SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

UNIT – I – RF and Microwave Engineering – SEC1405

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 I. Microwave Network and Components
1.1 INTRODUCTION

 Microwaves are electromagnetic waves (EM) with wavelengths ranging from 10cm to 1mm.
The corresponding frequency range is 30 GHz to 300 GHz .This means microwave frequencies
are upto infrared and visible-light regions.

 The microwaves frequencies span the following three major bands at the highest end of RF
spectrum.

i) Ultra high frequency (UHF) 0.3 to 3 Ghz

ii) Super high frequency (SHF) 3 to 30 Ghz

iii) Extra high frequency (EHF) 30 to 300 Ghz

 Most application of microwave technology make use of frequencies in the 1 to 40 Ghz range.

 During world war II , microwave engineering became a very essential consideration for the
development of high resolution radars capable of detecting and locating enemy planes and ships
through a Narrow beam of EM energy.

 The common characteristics of microwave device are the negative resistance that can be used
for microwave oscillation and amplification.

Figure 1 Electromagnetic Spectrum

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1.2 MICROWAVE SYSTEM

A microwave system normally consists of a transmitter subsystem, including a microwave

oscillator, wave guides and a transmitting antenna, and a receiver subsystem that includes a
receiving antenna, transmission line or wave guide, a microwave amplifier, and a receiver.

 Reflex Klystron, gunn diode, Traveling wave tube, and magnetron are used as a microwave
sources.

 Isolators provide low attenuation for the forward direction and high attenuation for reverse
direction to avoid reflected power.

 Attenuator provides attenuation for the power depends upon the microwave application.

Figure 1.2 Microwave system

 In order to design a microwave system and conduct a proper test on

it, an adequate knowledge of the components involved are essential.
 Therefore, a first course on microwave should include three major areas of
study, namely

i) Microwave transmission lines and waveguides

ii) Microwave circuits elements, and
iii) Microwave source, amplifier and detector.

ADVANTAGES

i) Because of their high operating frequencies, microwave system can carry

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 large quantities of information.
ii) High frequencies mean short wavelength, which require
relatively small antennas.
iii) Microwave signals are more easily propagated around physical obstacles such as
water and high mountains.
iv) Fewer repeaters are necessary for amplification.
v) Minimal crosstalk exists between voice channels.
vi) Increased reliability and less maintenance are important factors.
 Each station requires the purchase or lease of only a small area of
lands.
 Increased bandwidth availability.

DISADVANTAGES

i) It is more difficult to analyze and design circuits at microwave frequencies.

ii) Measuring techniques are more difficult to perfect and implement at
microwave frequencies.
iii) It is difficult to implement conventional circuits components
(resistances, capacitors , inductor and so on) at microwave frequencies.
iv) Transient time is more critical at microwave frequencies.
v) It is often n e c e s s a r y t o use specialized components for
microwave frequencies.
vi) Microwave frequencies propagate in a straight line, which limits their
use to line-of-sight applications.
Applications in Bio-medical

In addition to radiation, another important use of microwave energy in medicine is for the
thermal ablation of tissue. In this application microwave energy is used to create localised
dielectric heating (diathermy) resulting in controlled destruction of tissue. Microwave
ablation (MW ablation) is the next evolution of diathermy treatment and being a radiating
technology overcomes many issues such as current conduction problems with grounding pads
as used in high frequency and radio frequency diathermy.

Microwave ablation also provides desiccation of tissue without the excessive charring
and nerve damage associated with RF ablation. Various applications include treatment of large
tumors or removal of unwanted tissue masses, for example liver tumors, lung tumors and
prostate ablation. Microwaves can also be used to coagulate bleeding in highly vascular organs
such as the liver and spleen.

As microwaves have shorter wavelengths the choice of frequency can benefit the
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application, for example large volume ablations can typically be made at 915 MHz and
2.45 GHz and use of higher frequencies in the range 5.8 GHz - 10 GHz can create shallow
penetration of energy resulting in very precise ablations suitable for treatments such as skin
cancer, ablation of the heart to treat arrhythmia, uterine fibroids, multiple small liver metastases,
corneal ablation (vision correction), spinal nerve ablation (back pain), varicose vein treatment,
verrucae treatment and many other specific treatments.

About using microwaves in surgery is that they are uncontrollable. This has arisen as a
result of using standard industrial magnetrons and basing measurements such as reflected power
in microwave medical equipment on ideal 50 ohm microwave components. Modern microwave
generators may employ stable reliable solid state sources however the dielectric properties of
tissue varies considerably during treatments therefore microwave applicators (antennas) are not
always optimally matched to an ideal 50 ohms which can result in significant mismatch. This
can result in measurement uncertainty and VSWR problems which accounts for the perception
of an uncontrollable treatment.

Recent techniques, such as those developed by Emblation Limited, overcome this

problem in medical microwave applications to create a mismatch tolerant controllable user
experience that enhances patient safety and treatment reliability for the next generation of
microwave ablation treatments.In the field of oncology MW ablation now offers a new tool in
the arsenal of weapons to fight cancer, providing new opportunities to save many lives.

Frequencies 100 MHz -30 GHz.

a) Diagnostic applications: tumor detection based on differences in tissue

electrical properties.

b) Regional hyperthermia integrated with MRI

c) Therapeutic applications based on local heating: prostate hyperplasia, heart
and other tissue ablation, angioplasty.

d) MRI (& fMRI)

Industrial Applications

Industrial microwave applications are rapidly increasing. Their potential in certain areas, the
food, rubber and textile industries arises from a combination of advantages: efficient energy
conversion, automation and product quality control. Many other heating and drying applications
are under consideration today; these include pharmaceutical drying, film drying, and veneer
processing. Second and third generation equipment is now in successful use in industry, where
applications range from macaroni drying and oyster processing to the rapid heating of
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institutional lunches; microwave proofing of bread products, for example, has been shown to
require as little as one fifth of the energy needed with conventional heating methods.

Microwave Hazards

Microwave can produce thermal and non-thermal effects in biological systems. The
heating of tissues due to the absorption of microwave occurs due to the ionic conduction and
vibration of dipole molecules of water and proteins present in the body. The rise in temperature
of the tissues depends up on the frequency and power of microwave radiation being absorbed
and the cooling mechanism of the system.
When the thermoregulatory capability of the body or parts of the body is exceeded, tissue
damage and death can result. This occurs at absorbed power levels far above the metabolic
power output of the body.
Death usually results from the diffusion of heat from the irradiated portion of the body to
the rest of the body by the vascular system. When the absorbed energy increases due to the
prolonged exposure or increase in power of radiation, the protecting mechanism of heat control
breaks down, resulting in uncontrolled rise in body temperature.

At low power of irradiation, one usually gets heedache, vomitting, intraocular pain,
fatigue, nervousness, awareness of buzzing vibrations or pulsations and sensation of warmth.
Most of these effects are not permanent. The non-thermal effects) are not related with the
increase in temperature. One of such effects is known as pearlchain effect. This effect occurs in
the frequency range of I to 100 MHz.
When suspended particles of charcoal, starch, milk, erthrocytes or leucocytes (blood
cells) are placed in the RF field, the particles form the chains parallel to the electric lines of
force. The other non-thermal effect is the dielectric saturation in the solution of proteins and
other biological macromolecules in the presence of intense microwave fields.

• Radiation- is energy transmitted through space in the form of electromagnetic waves or sub-
atomic particles
• Examples include:
Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation, Microwaves, Infrared, Visible, Ultraviolet Light, X-rays and
Gamma Rays .The term “Electromagnetic Radiation” is restricted to that portion of the
spectrum commonly defined as the radio frequency region, which for our purposes also includes
the microwave frequency region.
HERP
• Observed Thermal effects (areas exceeding the MPE) :
– Heating of the body (Developing fetus is at no greater risk than mother)
– Cataracts
– Reduced sperm count in males
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– Perception
– Auditory (>100 mW/cm2) buzzing, clicking, hissing
– Work Disturbance (based on animal studies)
• RF Current Effects
– Shocks or Burns
– Neural Stimulation (Extremely Low Frequency – (0-3 kHz) (tissue damage at 10 x MPE)

Signs and Symptoms of possible over exposure may include:

Confusion, Vertigo, Headache,Blurred vision, Overall nauseous feeling, Body heating (Heat
Stress), Shocks and burns, Bad or metallic taste in mouth

RF shock or burns
May occur when you come into contact with either an RF radiator like an antenna. Many
antenna designs cause RF current to flow in their metallic components, which in turn, is
radiated into space. Touch one of these surfaces, and the energy will flow through your body to
ground. Similarly, the same thing can happen if you touch a reradiator. Any ungrounded,
conductive (usually metal) object that is in the field of a strong RF source can be illuminated by
the RF field and re-radiate the energy back into space.
When you touch a re-radiator, you provide a path to ground through you. A surge of energy
occurs at the point of contact. This results in a shock and, in many cases, an RF burn. The
primary factors that determine if you will receive a shock or burn should you contact a
conductive object are the strength of the electric field, the frequency, how well grounded you
are, and how much of your body touches the object. Severe burn-hazard conditions may exist
where the RF field level may be less than 1 percent of the MPE limit.
• HERO
Premature activation of electro-explosive devices (EED). Safe distances are calculated and
based on worse case most sensitive devices.

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1.3 SCATTERING OR (S) PARAMETERS

Figure. 1.3 Two port network

Low Frequency circuit can be described by two port networks and their parameters such
as Z,Y,H,ABCD etc. as per network theory. Here network parameters relate the total voltages
and total currents as shown in fig. 1.3.In similar way at microwave frequencies , we talk of
travelling waves with associated powers instead of voltages and current and the microwave
junction can be defined by what are called as S-parameters or scattering parameters(similar to H
, Y , Z parameter).

Referring to fig.1.4, it can be seen that for an input at one port, we have four outputs.
Similarly if we apply inputs to all the ports, we have 16 combinations, which are represented in
matrix form and that matrix is called as SCATTERING MATRIX. It is a square matrix which
gives all the combinations of power relationships between the various input and output port of a
microwave junction. The elements of this matrix are called scattering coefficients or Scattering
(S) parameters.To obtain the relationship between the scattering matrix and the input/output
powers at different ports , Consider a junction of „n‟ number is terminated in a source as shown
in fig. 1.5.

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 Figure 1.4 Four port waveguide

Figure 1.5 Four port waveguide with matched termination

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• S-parameters, scattering refers to the way in which the traveling currents and voltages in
a transmission line are affected when they meet a discontinuity caused by the insertion of
a network into the transmission line. This is equivalent to the wave meeting
an impedance differing from the line's characteristic impedance

Figure 1.6 Signal Flow in a two port network

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Scattering Matrix Formulation

To obtain the relationship between the scattering matrix and the input/output powers at different
ports consider a junction of n number of transmission lines wherein the ith line (i can be any line
from 1 to n) is terminated in a source as shown in fig 1.7

Case 1: Let the first line be terminated in an impedance other than the characteristic
impedance(i.e ZL ≠ Zo)

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 Figure 1.7 Microwave Junction of n-number of lines

• If ai is the incident wave, it divides among the n-1 number of lines as a1,a2…..an

• No reflections from 2nd to nth line

• The incident waves are absorbed since their impedance is equal to the characteristic
impedance

• 1 st line mismatch- wave reflected back to b1

b1 related to a1 by

b1= (reflection co -efficient) a1

=Si1. a1…………..(1)

Where Si1 = reflection co efficient of 1 st line

1 reflection from 1st line

isource connected at ith line

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Hence the contribution to the outward travelling wave in the ith line is given by

[ b2 =b3 =…………=bn=0]

bi = Si1. a1 ………………..(2)

Case 2: Let all the (n-1) lines be terminated in an impedance other than Z0(i.e. ZL ≠ Z 0 )

Then there will be reflections into the junction from every line and hence the total contribution to
the outward travelling wave in the ith line is given by

bi = 1 to n since I can be any line from 1 to n

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The column matrix [b] corresponds to the reflected waves or the output, while the
matrix [a] corresponds to the incident waves or the input. The scattering column matrix [s] which
is of the order of n×n contains the reflection coefficients and transmission coefficients.
Therefore,

[b]=[S][a]

Properties of [S] Matrix

The scattering matrix is indicated as [S] matrix. There are few standard properties
for [S] matrix. They are −
 [S] is always a square matrix of order nxn
[S]n×n
 [S] is a symmetric matrix
i.e., Sij=Sji
 [S] is a unitary matrix
i.e., [S][S]=I

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  The sum of the products of each term of any row or column multiplied by the complex
conjugate of the corresponding terms of any other row or column is zero. i.e.,

If the electrical distance between some kth port and the junction is βkIk, then the
coefficients of Sij involving k, will be multiplied by the factor e−jβkIk

1.4 MICROWAVE TEE JUNCTIONS

E-plane Tee

An E-Plane Tee junction is formed by attaching a simple waveguide to the broader

dimension of a rectangular waveguide, which already has two ports. The arms of rectangular
waveguides make two ports called collinear ports i.e., Port1 and Port2, while the new one, Port3
is called as Side arm or E-arm. T his E-plane Tee is also called as Series Tee. As the axis of the
side arm is parallel to the electric field, this junction is called E-Plane Tee junction. This is also
called as Voltage or Series junction. The ports 1 and 2 are 180° out of phase with each other.
The cross-sectional details of E-plane tee can be understood by the following fig 1.8

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 Figure 1.8 Microwave E plane Tee junctions

The connection made by the sidearm to the bi-directional waveguide to form the parallel
port is shown in fig 1.9

Figure 1.9 E plane bidirectional waveguide

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 Properties of E-Plane Tee

The properties of E-Plane Tee can be defined by its [S]3x3 matrix.

It is a 3×3 matrix as there are 3 possible inputs and 3 possible outputs.

Scattering coefficients S13 and S23 are out of phase by 180° with an input at port 3.

The port is perfectly matched to the junction.

From the symmetric property,

Considering equations 3 & 4, the [S] matrix can be written as,

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We can say that we have four unknowns, considering the symmetry property.
From the Unitary property

Multiplying the rows and columns we get,

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Equating the equations 6 & 7, we get

Using the equations 10, 11, and 12 in the equation 6,

Substituting the values from the above equations in [S] matrix,

We know that [b]= [S][a]

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This is the scattering matrix for E-Plane Tee, which explains its scattering properties.

H PLANE TEE

An H-Plane Tee junction is formed by attaching a simple waveguide to a rectangular

waveguide which already has two ports. The arms of rectangular waveguides make two ports
called collinear ports i.e., Port1 and Port2, while the new one, Port3 is called as Side arm or H-
arm. This H-plane Tee is also called as Shunt Tee.
As the axis of the side arm is parallel to the magnetic field, this junction is called H-
Plane Tee junction. This is also called as Current junction, as the magnetic field divides itself
into arms. The cross-sectional details of H-plane tee can be understood by the figure 1.20

Figure 1.20 H plane Tee

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The following figure 1.21 shows the connection made by the sidearm to the bi-directional
waveguide to form the serial port.

Figure 1.21 Bidirectional H plane waveguide

Properties of H-Plane Tee

The properties of H-Plane Tee can be defined by its [S]3×3 matrix.It is a 3×3 matrix as there
are 3 possible inputs and 3 possible outputs.

Scattering coefficients S13 and S23 are equal here as the junction is symmetrical in plane.
From the symmetric property,

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We can say that we have four unknowns, considering the symmetry property.
From the Unitary property

Multiplying we get,

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23
Substituting the coefficients we get

This is the scattering matrix for H-Plane Tee, which explains its scattering properties.

MAGIC TEE
An E-H Plane Tee junction is formed by attaching two simple waveguides one parallel and the
other series, to a rectangular waveguide which already has two ports. This is also called
as Magic Tee, or Hybrid or 3dB coupler.

The arms of rectangular waveguides make two ports called collinear ports i.e., Port 1 and Port
2, while the Port 3 is called as H-Arm or Sum port or Parallel port. Port 4 is called as E-
Arm or Difference port or Series port.

The cross-sectional details of Magic Tee can be understood by the following figure 1.22

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 Figure 1.22 Magic Tee
The following figure 1.23 shows the connection made by the side arms to the bi-directional
waveguide to form both parallel and serial ports.

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 Figure 1.23 Bi-directional Magic Tee waveguide
Characteristics of E-H Plane Tee
 If a signal of equal phase and magnitude is sent to port 1 and port 2, then the output at
port 4 is zero and the output at port 3 will be the additive of both the ports 1 and 2.
 If a signal is sent to port 4, E−arm then the power is divided between port 1 and 2
equally but in opposite phase, while there would be no output at port 3. Hence, S34 = 0.
 If a signal is fed at port 3, then the power is divided between port 1 and 2 equally, while
there would be no output at port 4. Hence, S43 = 0.
 If a signal is fed at one of the collinear ports, then there appears no output at the other
collinear port, as the E-arm produces a phase delay and the H-arm produces a phase
advance. So, S12 = S21 = 0.

Properties of E-H Plane Tee

The properties of E-H Plane Tee can be defined by its [S]4×4 matrix.

It is a 4×4 matrix as there are 4 possible inputs and 4 possible outputs.

As it has H-Plane Tee section

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As it has E-Plane Tee section

The E-Arm port and H-Arm port are so isolated that the other won't deliver an output, if an
input is applied at one of them. Hence, this can be noted as

From the symmetry property, we have

If the ports 3 and 4 are perfectly matched to the junction, then

Substituting all the above equations in equation 1, to obtain the [S] matrix,

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From Unitary property, [S][S]*=[I]

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Now we understand that ports 1 and 2 are perfectly matched to the junction. As this is a 4 port
junction, whenever two ports are perfectly matched, the other two ports are also perfectly
matched to the junction.
The junction where all the four ports are perfectly matched is called as Magic Tee Junction.
By substituting the equations we obtain the scattering matrix of Magic Tee as

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 Applications of E-H Plane Tee
Some of the most common applications of E-H Plane Tee are as follows −
 E-H Plane junction is used to measure the impedance − A null detector is connected to
E-Arm port while the Microwave source is connected to H-Arm port. The collinear ports
together with these ports make a bridge and the impedance measurement is done by
balancing the bridge.
 E-H Plane Tee is used as a duplexer − A duplexer is a circuit which works as both the
transmitter and the receiver, using a single antenna for both purposes. Port 1 and 2 are
used as receiver and transmitter where they are isolated and hence will not interfere.
Antenna is connected to E-Arm port. A matched load is connected to H-Arm port, which
provides no reflections. Now, there exists transmission or reception without any
problem.
 E-H Plane Tee is used as a mixer − E-Arm port is connected with antenna and the H-
Arm port is connected with local oscillator. Port 2 has a matched load which has no
reflections and port 1 has the mixer circuit, which gets half of the signal power and half
of the oscillator power to produce IF frequency.
In addition to the above applications, an E-H Plane Tee junction is also used as Microwave
bridge, Microwave discriminator, etc.

Rat Race junction

This microwave device is used when there is a need to combine two signals with no phase
difference and to avoid the signals with a path difference.
A normal three-port Tee junction is taken and a fourth port is added to it, to make it a ratrace
junction. All of these ports are connected in angular ring forms at equal intervals using series or
parallel junctions.
The mean circumference of total race is 1.5λ and each of the four ports are separated by a
distance of λ/4. The following figure 1.24 shows the image of a Rat-race junction.

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 Figure 1.24 Rat Race junction

Let us consider a few cases to understand the operation of a Rat-race junction.

Case 1
If the input power is applied at port 1, it gets equally split into two ports, but in clockwise
direction for port 2 and anti-clockwise direction for port 4. Port 3 has absolutely no output.
The reason being, at ports 2 and 4, the powers combine in phase, whereas at port 3, cancellation
occurs due to λ/2 path difference.
Case 2
If the input power is applied at port 3, the power gets equally divided between port 2 and port 4.
But there will be no output at port 1.
Case 3
If two unequal signals are applied at port 1 itself, then the output will be proportional to the sum
of the two input signals, which is divided between port 2 and 4. Now at port 3, the differential
output appears.
The Scattering Matrix for Rat-race junction is represented as

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Applications
Rat-race junction is used for combining two signals and dividing a signal into two halves.
Directional Coupler

A Directional coupler is a device that samples a small amount of Microwave power for
measurement purposes. The power measurements include incident power, reflected power,
VSWR values, etc.
Directional Coupler is a 4-port waveguide junction consisting of a primary main waveguide and
a secondary auxiliary waveguide. The following figure 1.25 shows the image of a directional
coupler.

Figure 1.25 Directional coupler

Directional coupler is used to couple the Microwave power which may be unidirectional or bi-
directional.
Properties of Directional Couplers
The properties of an ideal directional coupler are as follows.
 All the terminations are matched to the ports.
 When the power travels from Port 1 to Port 2, some portion of it gets coupled to Port 4
but not to Port 3.
 As it is also a bi-directional coupler, when the power travels from Port 2 to Port 1, some
portion of it gets coupled to Port 3 but not to Port 4.
 If the power is incident through Port 3, a portion of it is coupled to Port 2, but not to Port
1.

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  If the power is incident through Port 4, a portion of it is coupled to Port 1, but not to Port
2.
 Port 1 and 3 are decoupled as are Port 2 and Port 4.
Ideally, the output of Port 3 should be zero. However, practically, a small amount of power
called back power is observed at Port 3. The following figure 1.26 indicates the power flow in a
directional coupler.

Figure 1.26 Directional Coupler indicating powers

Where
 Pi = Incident power at Port 1
 Pr = Received power at Port 2
 Pf= Forward coupled power at Port 4
 Pb= Back power at Port 3

Following are the parameters used to define the performance of a directional coupler.

Coupling Factor C
The Coupling factor of a directional coupler is the ratio of incident power to the forward
power, measured in dB.

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Directivity D

The Directivity of a directional coupler is the ratio of forward power to the back power,
measured in dB.

Isolation
It defines the directive properties of a directional coupler. It is the ratio of incident power
to the back power, measured in dB.

Isolation in dB = Coupling factor + Directivity

Two-Hole Directional Coupler

This is a directional coupler with same main and auxiliary waveguides, but with two small holes
that are common between them. These holes are λg/4 distance apart where λg is the guide
wavelength. The following figure 1.27 shows the image of a two-hole directional coupler.

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 Figure 1.27 Two-Hole Directional coupler

A two-hole directional coupler is designed to meet the ideal requirement of directional

coupler, which is to avoid back power. Some of the power while travelling between Port 1 and
Port 2, escapes through the holes 1 and 2.
The magnitude of the power depends upon the dimensions of the holes. This leakage
power at both the holes are in phase at hole 2, adding up the power contributing to the forward
power Pf. However, it is out of phase at hole 1, cancelling each other and preventing the back
power to occur.
Hence, the directivity of a directional coupler improves.

Waveguide Joints
As a waveguide system cannot be built in a single piece always, sometimes it is
necessary to join different waveguides. This joining must be carefully done to prevent problems
such as − Reflection effects, creation of standing waves, and increasing the attenuation, etc.
The waveguide joints besides avoiding irregularities should also take care of E and H
field patterns by not affecting them. There are many types of waveguide joints such as bolted
flange, flange joint, choke joint, etc.
WAVE GUIDE CORNERS , BENDS AND TWISTS:

The waveguide corner, bend, and twist are shown in figure below, these waveguide
components are normally used to change the direction of the guide through an arbitrary angle. In
order to minimize reflections from the discontinuities, it is desirable to have the mean length L
between continuities equal to an odd number of quarter wave lengths. That is,

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where n = 0, 1, 2, 3, ... , and Ag is the wavelength in the waveguide. If the mean length L is an
odd number of quarter wavelengths, the reflected waves from both ends of the waveguide section
are completely canceled. For the waveguide bend, the minimum radius of curvature for a small
reflection is given by Southworth as

Figure 1.28 Corners Bends and twists

CIRCUALTORS AND ISOLATORS:

Both microwave circulators and isolators are non reciprocal transmission devices that use the
property of Faraday rotation in the ferrite material. A non reciprocal phase shifter consists of thin
slab of ferrite placed in a rectangular waveguide at a point where the dc magnetic field of the
incident wave mode is circularly polarized. When a piece of ferrite is affected by a dc magnetic
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field the ferrite exhibits Faraday rotation. It does so because the ferrite is nonlinear material and
its permeability is an asymmetric tensor.

MICROWAVE CIRCULATORS:

A microwave circulator is a multiport waveguide junction in which the wave can flow
only from the nth port to the (n + I)th port in one direction Although there is no restriction on the
number of ports, the four-port microwave circulator is the most common. One type of four-port
microwave circulator is a combination of two 3-dB side hole directional couplers and a
rectangular waveguide with two non reciprocal phase shifters.

Figure 1.29 Symbol and schematic of Circulator

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 The operating principle of a typical microwave circulator can be analyzed with the aid of
Fig shown above .Each of the two 3- dB couplers in the circulator introduces a phase shift of
90°, and each of the two phase shifters produces a certain amount of phase change in a certain
direction as indicated. When a wave is incident to port 1,the wave is split into two components
by coupler I. The wave in the primary guide arrives at port 2 with a relative phase' change of
180°. The second wave propagates through the two couplers and the secondary guide and arrives
at port 2 with a relative phase shift of 180°. Since the two waves reaching port 2 are in phase, the
power transmission is obtained from port 1 to port 2. However, the wave propagates through the
primary guide, phase shifter, and coupler 2 and arrives at port 4 with a phase change of 270°.
The wave travels through coupler 1 and the secondary guide, and it arrives at port 4 with a phase
shift of 90°. Since the two waves reaching port 4 are out of phase by 180°, the power
transmission from port 1 to port 4 is zero. In general, the differential propagation constants in the
two directions of propagation in a waveguide containing ferrite phase shifters should be

where m and n are any integers, including zeros. A similar analysis shows that a wave
incident to port 2 emerges at port 3 and so on. As a result, the sequence of power flow is
designated as 1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4 ~ 1. Many types of microwave circulators are in use today. However,
their principles of operation remain the same. .A four-port circulator is constructed by the use of
two magic tees and a phase shifter as shown in fig 1.30. The phase shifter produces a phase shift
of 180°.

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 Figure 1.30 Circulator using Magic Tee

A perfectly matched, lossless, and nonreciprocal four-port circulator has an S matrix of the form

Using the properties of S parameters the S-matrix is

MICROWAVE ISOLATORS:

An isolator is a nonreciprocal transmission device that is used to isolate one component

from reflections of other components in the transmission line. An ideal isolator completely
absorbs the power for propagation in one direction and provides lossless transmission in the
opposite direction. Thus the isolator is usually called uniline.
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 Isolators are generally used to improve the frequency stability of microwave generators,
such as klystrons and magnetrons, in which the reflection from the load affects the generating
frequency. In such cases, the isolator placed between the generator and load prevents the
reflected power from the unmatched load from returning to the generator. As a result, the isolator
maintains the frequency stability of the generator. Isolators can be constructed in many ways.
They can be made by terminating ports 3 and 4 of a four-port circulator with matched loads. On
the other hand, isolators can be made by inserting a ferrite rod along the axis of a rectangular
waveguide as shown below. The isolator here is a Faraday-rotation isolator. Its operating
principle can be explained as follows . The input resistive card is in the y-z plane, and the output
resistive card is displaced 45° with respect to the input card.

Figure 1.31 Schematic of Isolator

The dc magnetic field, which is applied longitudinally to the ferrite rod, rotates the wave
plane of polarization by 45°. The degrees of rotation depend on the length and diameter of the
rod and on the applied de magnetic field. An input TE10 dominant mode is incident to the left
end of the isolator. Since the TEIO mode wave is perpendicular to the input resistive card, the
wave passes through the ferrite rod without attenuation. The wave in the ferrite rod section is
rotated clockwise by 45° and is normal to the output resistive card. As a result of rotation, the
wave arrives at the output end without attenuation at all. On the contrary, a reflected wave from the
output end is similarly rotated clockwise 45° by the ferrite rod. However, since the reflected
40
wave is parallel to the input resistive card, the wave is thereby absorbed by the input card. The
typical performance of these isolators is about 1-dB insertion loss in forward transmission and
about 20- to 30-dB isolation in reverse attenuation.

TEXT BOOK / REFERENCE BOOKS

1. David M. Pozar, “Microwave Engineering”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
2. Samuel Y Liao, “Microwave Devices & Circuits”, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall of India,
2008.
3. Kulkarni M., "Microwave and Radar Engineering", 4th Edition, Umesh Publication, 2010.
4. Annapurna Das and Sisir K Das, “Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Tata McGraw Hill, 2010.
5. M.M.Radmanesh, “RF & Microwave Electronics Illustrated”, Pearson Education, 2007.
6. Robert E.Colin, “Foundations for Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill,
2001.

41
 PART:A
1. Define microwave
2. Enumerate the basic advantage of microwaves
3. Write the applications of microwaves.
4. Define scattering matrix.
5. What are scattering coefficients?
6. Why, the S- parameters are used in microwaves?
7. Give the relationship between S-parameter and Z-parameter.
8. What is H-plane Tee?
9. What is the zero property of S-matrix?
10. Define lossless network
Part: B
1. How microwave junction can be described by scattering
matrix. State and explain the properties of S-parameter.
2. Describe the functional characteristics of Directional coupler
and give its S-matrix.
3. Discuss about various losses in microwave.
4. Explain the properties and application of Magic Tee .Derive
its scattering matrix.
5. Derive the S-parameter of a directional coupler and Define
Directivity of Directional coupler.
6. Explain in detail about the types and application of
Directional coupler.
7. Describe the functional characteristics of E-plane Tee and H-
plane Tee

42
 SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

UNIT – II- RF AND MICROWAVE ENGINEERING– SEC1405

1
 II. Power Dividers and Couplers
2.1 INTRODUCTION
These are passive components used for power division or power combining. In power
division, an input signal is divided by coupler in two (or more) signals, equally or not

Figure 2.1 Power Divider and Coupler

2.1.1 Three Port Networks (T Junction)

It has two inputs with one output. If component is passive (no anisotropic material), the network

is reciprocal Sij=Sji and when all ports are also matched(Sii=0) , considering lossless one

Using the features of [S] for lossless and reciprocal network

To satisfy, above equation at least two parameters have to be zero means that three port
network can not be reciprocal, lossless and matched all ports. If the network is
nonreciprocal with matching all port and satisfaction of energy conservation, such a
device is known as Circulator relies on anisotropic materials

2
 If only two ports of the network are matched, a lossless and reciprocal network can
be physically realizable. If the network is being lossy, network can be reciprocal and
matched at all ports (Resistive Divideror Isolator ). As an example, Ferrite Isolators are
two - port device having unidirectional transmission characteristics. Because [S] is not
unitary, the isolator must be lossy. The isolators can be used between a high - power
source and load to prevent possible reflections from damaging the source by absorbing
reflected power

2.2 T Junction Power Divider

This can be used for power division (or combining).
Lossless Divider : This suffers from the problem of not being matched at all ports and in
addition does not have any isolation between two output ports. The fringing fields and
higher order modes at the discontinuity leading stored energy can be accounted by
a lumped susceptance, B . The output line impedances Z1 and Z2 can be selected to
provide various power decision.

Resistive Divider : Possible to match all ports simultaneously, the resistive (lossy) divider
is used, but no isolation between two output ports due to being not lossless. Half of the
Applied power is dissipated in resistors.

3
 Figure 2.2 T junction power divider

The lossless T junction divider can be modeled as three transmission. In general there may be
fringing fields and higher order modes ,leading to stored energy which can be accounted by a
lumped susceptance , B. The admittance is given by in order the divider to be matched to input
line characteristic impedance

Transmission lines assumed to be lossless hence B=0

4
 Figure 2.3

Resistive Power Divider

Figure 2.4 Schematic of resistive power divider

5
Assuming that all the three ports are terminated with the characteristic impedance Z0, the
impedance Z seen looking into the resistor Z0/3 resistor followed by the output terminated line

Total Impedance = 4Z0/3 parallel 4z0/3

Looking from the input line

Line impedance Z0 and load impedance also Z0 ---matched Port 2 and Port 3 symmetric to port
1 ,so all ports are matched….it is done by introducing series resistor
Let us assume that V1 ,V ,V2,V3 voltages at the transmission lines Voltage at the junction will
be, V

6
2.3 Four Port Networks (Directional Coupler)
It has two inputs and two outputs. After considering using the features of matrix
for [S] reciprocal, matched and lossless Network, the possible solutions S14=S23=0 are
means
Directional Coupler . Using different phase references, Symmetrical or Anti –
symmetrical Directional Coupler may be defined. The design parameters of directional coupler
are

7
The coupling factor shows the fraction of input power to the output. The directivity is a
measure of isolation ability for forward and backward waves. The ideal coupler has
infinite directivity and isolation and also lossless. The directional property of the all
directional coupler is produced through the use of two separate waves or wave
components, which add in phase at the coupled port, and cancel in phase at the isolated port.

Waveguide Directional Coupler

Bethe Hole Coupler : Couple one waveguide to another through a single small hole in
the common wall. Types of the parallel guides and skewed guides work properly only
at the design frequency (narrow bandwidth in terms of its directivity).

Multi Hole Coupler : Series of coupling holes are used to increase bandwidth as similar
design to multi section transformer. Making coupling coefficients proportional to binominal
coefficients, maximally flat response can be obtained. Using Chebysev polynomial, different
responses are possible.

Figure 2.5 Coupler

Wilkinson Power Divider

8
The lossless T-junction divider suffers from the disadvantage of not being matched at all ports,
and it does not have isolation between output ports. The resistive divider can be matched at all
ports, but even though it is not lossless, isolation is still not achieved • The Wilkinson power
divider is such a network, with the useful property of appearing lossless when the output ports
are matched; that is, only reflected power from the output ports is dissipated. • The Wilkinson
power divider can be made with arbitrary power division, but we will first consider the equal-
split (3 dB) case • This divider is often made in microstrip line or strip line form
Matched to all its ports • Reciprocal • Lossy

Figure 2.6 Wilkinson Power Divider

It is a network with the useful property of being lossless when the output ports
are matched, that is, only reflected power is dissipated. It is known that a lossy three
port network can be made having all ports are matched with isolation between the output
ports. Wilkinson Power Divider can be made in microstrip or stripline form with
arbitrary power division of way Divider or Combiner. The even –odd mode technique is used
for analysis.
There are 2- λ/4 sections with the characteristic impedance • All the input side
characteristic impedance is z0 • When power is given input at port 1, divide into two parts port 2
and 3,if there is any reflected power from the o/p port due to mismatch will couple into the
resistor 2zo and dissipated. • Using this lossy property to dissipate the reflected power so that it
the conditions are satisfied

9
Hybrid Coupler
It has C= 3dB having types of the following

Quadrature Hybrid (Hybrid)

This is a 3dB directional coupler (knows as Branch Line Hybrid ) with a phase difference
in outputs (2 3). Even -odd mode technique can be applied for analysis. [S] matrix has a high
degree of symmetry means any port can be used for input as given below

Figure 2.7 Quadrature coupler

180 Hybrid

It is a four port network with a phase shift (23) between two outputs (also may be in
phase). It can be used as a combiner and has unitary symmetric scattering matrix as It may be

10
produces as the form of ring hybrid (rate race), tapered matching lines and hybrid
waveguide junction (Magic T, (Rate Race)) in which symmetrically (or antisymmetrical )
placed tuning ports (or irises) can be used for matching.

Coupled Line Directional Coupler Coupled lines of two (or more) transmission lines are
closed together, power can be coupled between the lines. Generally TEM mode is
assumed rigorously valid for striplines, but approximately valid for microstrips.
Coupled Line Theory is based on types of excitations as even mode (strip currents are
equal in amplitude with same directions) and odd mode (strip currents are equal in
amplitude with opposite directions). Arbitrary excitation can be treated as a
superposition of appropriate even and odd modes amplitudes. Moreover design
graphs are present for coupled lines.

Figure 2.8 Couple line coupler

Design Considerations:

Although a single section coupled line has limited bandwidth due to requirement,
the bandwidth can be increased using multiple sections coupled line having close
relations to multisection QWT.
The assumption of the same velocity of propagation for even and odd modes in
design, generally not satisfied for a coupled microstrip or non TEM lines. This gives
poor directivity. By using more effective dielectric constant (smaller phase velocity) for even

11
mode, phase differences should be minimized. This also produces problems as the
mismatching phase velocities for multisection case and degrades coupler directivity. Increasing
bandwidth can be obtained with low coupling limits.
Lange Coupler

To increase coupling factor, Lange Coupler (several lines) with phase difference
between outputs is used as a 3 dB coupling ratio in an octave or more bandwidth can be
achieved. The main disadvantage of it (a type of quadrature hybrid) is difficult to
fabricate due to very narrow lines.

Figure 2.9 Lange Coupler

Folded Lange coupler is also used for more easily analysis to model equivalent circuit.

Other Couplers
Moreno Crossed Guide Coupler
Schwinger Reversed Phase Coupler
Riblet Short Slot Coupler
Symmetric Tapered Coupled Line Coupler
Coupler with Apertures in Planar Lines

As an example of a device uses a directional coupler is Reflectometer isolate and

sample the incident and reflected powers from a mismatch load as a heart of a scalar (or
vectorial) network analyzer.

12
2.4 MICROWAVE FILTERS
A filter is a two-port network used to control the frequency response at a certain point in
an RF or microwave system by providing transmission at frequencies within the passband of the
filter and attenuation in the stopband of the filter. Typical frequency responses include low-pass,
high-pass, bandpass, and band-reject characteristics. Applications can be found in virtually any
type of RF or microwave communication, radar, or test and measurement system. Filters
designed using the image parameter method consist of a cascade of simpler twoport filter
sections to provide the desired cutoff frequencies and attenuation characteristics but do not allow
the specification of a particular frequency response over the complete operating range. Thus,
although the procedure is relatively simple, the design of filters by the image parameter method
often must be iterated many times to achieve the desired results.
A more modern procedure, called the insertion loss method, uses network synthesis
techniques to design filters with a completely specified frequency response. The design is
simplified by beginning with low-pass filter prototypes that are normalized in terms of
impedance and frequency. Transformations are then applied to convert the prototype designs to
the desired frequency range and impedance level.

FILTER DESIGN BY THE IMAGE PARAMETER METHOD

The image parameter method of filter design involves the specification of passband and
stopband characteristics for a cascade of simple two-port networks, and so is related in concept
to the periodic structures. The method is relatively simple but has the disadvantage that an
arbitrary frequency response cannot be incorporated into the design. This is in contrast to the
insertion loss method, which is the subject of the following section. Nevertheless, the image
parameter method is useful for simple filters, and it provides a link between infinite periodic
structures and practical filter design. The image parameter method also finds application in solid-
state traveling-wave amplifier design.

13
Image Impedances and Transfer Functions for Two-Port Networks
Consider the arbitrary two-port network shown in Figure 8.7, where the network is
specified by its ABCD parameters. Note that the reference direction for the current at port 2 has
been chosen according to the convention for ABCD parameters. The image impedances, Zi1 and
Zi2, are defined for this network as follows: Zi1 = input impedance at port 1 when port 2 is
terminated with Zi2 = input impedance at port 2 when port 1 is terminated with Zi1. Thus both
ports are matched when terminated in their image impedances. We can derive expressions for the
image impedances in terms of the ABCD parameters of the network.

Figure 2.10 A two port network terminated in its image impedance

The port voltages and currents are related as

The input impedance at port 1, with port 2 terminated in Zi2, is

14
since V2 = Zi2 I2. Now solving for V2, I2 by inverting the ABCD matrix. Since AD − BC = 1
for a reciprocal network, we obtain

Then the input impedance at port 2, with port 1 terminated in Zi1, can be found as

since V1 = −Zi1 I1 in figure 2.10 .We desire that Zin1 = Zi1 and Zin2 = Zi2, so (8.23) and (8.25)
give two equations for the image impedances:

Solving for Zi1 and Zi2 gives

with Zi2 = DZi1/A. If the network is symmetric, then A = D and Zi1 = Zi2 as expected. Now
consider the voltage transfer function for a two-port network terminated in its image impedances.
With reference to Figure 2.11 and , the output voltage at port 2 can be expressed as

15
Figure 2.11 A two-port network terminated in its image impedances and driven with a
voltage generator.
(since we now have V1 = I1Zi1), so the voltage ratio is

Similarly, the current ratio is

The factor √D/A occurs in reciprocal positions in (8.29a) and (8.29b), and so can be interpreted
as a transformer turns ratio. Apart from this factor, we can define a propagation factor for the
network as

with γ = α + jβ as usual. Since

16
Two important types of two-port networks are the T and π circuits, which can be made in
symmetric form. Table 8.1 lists the image impedances and propagation factors, along with other
useful parameters, for these two networks.

FILTER DESIGN BY THE INSERTION LOSS METHOD

A perfect filter would have zero insertion loss in the passband, in the passband, infinite
attenuation in the stopband, and a linear phase response (to avoid signal distortion) in the
passband. Of course, such filters do not exist in practice, so compromises must be made; herein
lies the art of filter design. The image parameter method of the previous section may yield a
usable filter response for some applications, but there is no methodical way of improving the
design. The insertion loss method, however, allows a high degree of control over the passband
and stopband amplitude and phase characteristics, with a systematic way to synthesize a desired
response. The necessary design trade-offs can be evaluated to best meet the application
requirements. If, for example, a minimum insertion loss is most important, a binomial response
could be used; a Chebyshev response would satisfy a requirement for the sharpest cutoff. If it is
possible to sacrifice the attenuation rate, a better phase response can be obtained by using a
linear phase filter design. In addition, in all cases, the insertion loss method allows filter
performance to be improved in a straightforward manner, at the expense of a higher order filter.
For the filter prototypes to be discussed below, the order of the filter is equal to the number of
reactive elements.
Characterization by Power Loss Ratio In the insertion loss method a filter response is defined
by its insertion loss, or power loss ratio, PLR:

17
Observe that this quantity is the reciprocal of |S12| 2 if both load and source are matched. The
insertion loss (IL) in dB is

we know that | (ω)| 2 is an even function of ω; therefore it can be

expressed as a polynomial in ω2. Thus we can write

where M and N are real polynomials in ω2. Substituting this form in (8.49) gives the following:

For a filter to be physically realizable its power loss ratio must be of the form in (8.52). Notice
that specifying the power loss ratio simultaneously constrains the magnitude of the reflection
coefficient, | (ω)|. We now discuss some practical filter responses. Maximally flat: This
characteristic is also called the binomial or Butterworth response, and is optimum in the sense
that it provides the flattest possible passband response for a given filter complexity, or order. For
a low-pass filter, it is specified by

where N is the order of the filter and ωc is the cutoff frequency. The passband extends from ω =
0 to ω = ωc; at the band edge the power loss ratio is 1 + k2. If we choose this as the −3 dB point,
as is common, we have k = 1, which we will assume from now on. For ω>ωc, the attenuation
increases monotonically with frequency, as shown in Figure 2.12. For ω ωc, PLR
k2(ω/ωc)2N , which shows that the insertion loss increases at the rate of 20N dB/decade. Like
the binomial response for multisection quarter-wave matching transformers, the first (2N − 1)
derivatives of are zero at ω = 0.
Equal ripple: If a Chebyshev polynomial is used to specify the insertion loss of an Nthorder low-
pass filter as
18
Figure 2.12 Maximally flat and equal-ripple low-pass filter responses (N = 3).

then a sharper cutoff will result, although the passband response will have ripples of amplitude 1
+ k2, as shown in Figure 2.12, since TN (x) oscillates between ±1 for |x| 21. Thus, k2 determines
the passband ripple level. For large x, TN (x)
1 2 (2x)N, so for ω ωc the insertion loss becomes

19
 Figure 2.13 Elliptic function low-pass filter response.

which also increases at the rate of 20N dB/decade. However, the insertion loss for the Chebyshev
case is (22N )/4 greater than the binomial response at any given frequency where ω ωc. Elliptic
function: The maximally flat and equal-ripple responses both have monotonically increasing
attenuation in the stopband. In many applications it is adequate to specify a minimum stopband
attenuation, in which case a better cutoff rate can be obtained. Such filters are called elliptic
function filters , and they have equal-ripple responses in the passband as well as in the stopband,
as shown in Figure 2.13. The maximum attenuation in the passband, Amax, can be specified, as
well as the minimum attenuation in the stopband, Amin. Elliptic function filters are difficult to
synthesize, so we will not consider them further; the interested reader is referred to reference
Linear phase: The above filters specify the amplitude response, but in some applications
(such as multiplexing filters for communication systems) it is important to have a linear phase
response in the passband to avoid signal distortion. Since a sharp-cutoff response is generally
incompatible with a good phase response, the phase response of a filter must be deliberately
synthesized, usually resulting in an inferior attenuation characteristic. A linear phase
characteristic can be achieved with the following phase response:

20
where φ(ω) is the phase of the voltage transfer function of the filter, and p is a constant. A related
quantity is the group delay, defined as

which shows that the group delay for a linear phase filter is a maximally flat function. More
general filter specifications can be obtained, but the above cases are the most common. We will
next discuss the design of low-pass filter prototypes that are normalized in terms of impedance
and frequency; this normalization simplifies the design of filters

Figure 2.14 The process of filter design by the insertion loss method.

for arbitrary frequency, impedance, and type (low-pass, high-pass, bandpass, or bandstop). The
low-pass prototypes are then scaled to the desired frequency and impedance, and the lumped-
element components replaced with distributed circuit elements for implementation at microwave
frequencies. This design process is illustrated in Figure 2.14.

21
 TEXT BOOK / REFERENCE BOOKS
1. David M. Pozar, “Microwave Engineering”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
2. Samuel Y Liao, “Microwave Devices & Circuits”, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall of India,
2008.
3. Kulkarni M., "Microwave and Radar Engineering", 4th Edition, Umesh Publication, 2010.
4. Annapurna Das and Sisir K Das, “Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Tata McGraw Hill, 2010.
5. M.M.Radmanesh, “RF & Microwave Electronics Illustrated”, Pearson Education, 2007.
6. Robert E.Colin, “Foundations for Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill,
2001.

22
 UNIT: II
POWER DIVIDERS AND COUPLERS

PART: A
1. What is power divider?
2. Define coupling factor
3. What is hybrid ring?
4. What do you meant by hybrid junction?
5. Name the circuits used in hybrid MMICs
6. Mention the materials used in MMICs
7. What are hybrid integrated circuits?
8. Define tee junction.
9. Define a two port network
10. What is termination and mention its application

PART: B

1. Explain the operation of power divider

2. Explain in detail about impedance matching devices.
3. Describe the basic properties of dividers and couplers and
differentiate three port networks and four port networks
4. Describe the principle and operation of Wilkinson power
divider
5. Explain in detail about impedance matching device
6. Write in detail the filter design by
(a) Image parameter method
(b) Insertion loss method

23
 SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATION

ENGINEERING

UNIT – III- RF AND MICROWAVE ENGINEERING – SEC1405

1
 III MICROWAVE SOURCES

3.1 INTRODUCTION

O-TYPE Linear Tubes (Travelling tube amplifiers, Klystrons) .In O-Type tube , a
magnetic field whose axis coincides with the electron beam is used to hold the beam
together as it travels the length of the tube

Figure 3.1 Classification of microwave tubes

Velocity-modulated Tubes

Velocity-modulated tubes are microwave tubes using transit time in the conversion
of dc power to radio-frequency power. The interchange of power is accomplished by
using the principle of electron velocity modulation and low-loss resonant cavities in (or
near the electron beam of) the microwave tube.

Velocity modulation is then defined as that variation in the velocity of a beam of

electrons caused by the alternate speeding up and slowing down of the electrons in the
beam. This variation is usually caused by a voltage signal applied between the grids
through which the beam must pass. The direction of the electron beam and the static
electrical field goes to each other parallelly (linearly) into linear beam tubes. Against this
the fields influencing the electron beam stand vertically by the electron beam at the cross
field tubes.

2
 The following table compares with characteristic quantities of the velocity-
modulated tubes used in radar technology. Although the planar tube isn't a velocity-
modulated tube, it was included into this table for comparison purposes. The grid of the
density controlled tube (like the planar triode) regulates the number of electrons on the
path to the anode. The different speeds of the electrons by additional accelerating due
the microwave voltage are annoying in this case. The cut-off frequency of density
controlled tubes is relatively low. Higher frequencies need the use of velocity- modulated
tubes, as shown in the table:

Table 3.1 Comparison between microwave tubes

3.2 Klystron Amplifier

Klystron amplifiers are high power microwave vacuum tubes They are used in
some coherent radar transmitters as power amplifiers. Klystrons make use of the transit-
time effect by varying the velocity of an electron beam. A klystron uses special resonant
cavities which modulate the electric field around the axis of the tube modulating the
electric field around the axis the tube. In the middle of these cavities, there is a grid
allowing the electrons to pass the cavity. Due to the number of the resonant cavities
klystrons are divided up into Two- or Multicavity klystrons, and Reflex or Repeller
Klystrons.

3
3.2.1 Two-Cavity Klystron
As the name implies, this klystron uses two cavities. The first cavity together with
the first coupling device is called a “buncher”, while the second cavity with its coupling
device is called a “catcher”. The direction of the field changes with the frequency of the
“buncher” cavity. These changes alternately accelerate and decelerate the electrons of
the beam passing through the grids of the buncher cavity. The area beyond the cavities
is called the “drift space”. The electrons form bunches in this area when the accelerated
electrons overtake the decelerated electrons.

The function of the “catcher” cavity is to absorb energy from the electron beam.
The “catcher” grids are placed along the beam at a point where the bunches are fully
formed. The location is determined by the transit time of the bunches at the natural
resonant frequency of the cavities (the resonant frequency of the catcher cavity is the
same as the buncher cavity).The air-cooled collector collect the energy of the electron
beam and change it into heat and X radiation.
Klystron amplification, power output, and efficiency can be greatly improved by
the addition of intermediate cavities between the input and output cavities of the basic
klystron. Additional cavities serve to velocity-modulate the electron beam and produce
an increase in the energy available at the output.

Figure 3.2: Physical construction and mode of operation of a two-cavity klystron

As indicated in the introduction this voltage will produce velocity modulation on the
beam.
4
Let the Z’ axis be taken in the direction of electron flow with grid position Z=0.

As the electron in between grids experiences a force due to the RF electric field

(1)

Where,V1 is the amplitude of the signal and V1 << V0

By considering either time to or the exiting time t1,te modulated velocity in the buncher
cavity can be determined.The average microwave voltage in the buncher gap needs to be
determined in below figure 3.2

Figure3.2 Signal Voltage in the Buncher gap

As V1<<V0 ,the average transit time all the way through the bunchergap of distance d
is

(2)

The phase delay caused during transit time across the gap is referred to as gap transit angle ᶿg
and can be given as

(3)
Eventually, The average microwave voltage in the buncher gap can be given as

(4)

5
 (5)

let

(6)
By using trigonometric relations ie cos(A-B)-cos(A+B)=2sinAsinB Eq 5 can be
written as

(
7)

Where β1 the beam coupling coefficient of the input cavity gap and is given as

We can observe that when the gap transit angle increases the coupling between the
electron beam and buncher cavity reduces which means for a given microwave signal
the velocity modulation decreases.The exit velocity modulation,can be instantly
calculated as

(9)

Substituting Eq 7 in Eq 9

(10)

6
 Where, the fector β1V1/V0 is called the depth of velocity modulation

(11)

Where β1 the beam coupling coefficient of the input cavity gap and id given as
assuming that β1V1<<V0 and by means of binomial expansion the Eq 11 is modified
as

(12)

This is called the velocity modulation equation,this equation can also be written as,

(13)

Applegate diagram:

7
 Figure 3.3: Applegate diagram

In a quarter of one period of the plasma frequency, the velocity modulation is

converted to density modulation, i.e. bunches of electrons. Now let’s see this procedure
with the help of Applegate diagram hus the electron beam is velocity modulated to form
bunches or undergoes density(Current modulation) with input RF signal. This current
modulation of beam produces amplification of RF signal input at the catcher cavity. Thus
what we obtain finally is the amplification of RF input signal. One important observation
is that the phase of output signal is opposite to that of input signal. Also many harmonics
are generated during amplification. One way to remove this harmonics is to tune the
catcher cavity to the fundamental frequency or any other harmonic desired.

Bunching process:

The Electrons from the bunching centre they pass through at Vs=0 with an
unchanged velocity Vo.During the Positive half cycles of the microwave input voltage
Vs the electron passes the gap faster compared to the electrons that pass the gap at
Vs=0.The electrons that enter buncher cavity during neagative half cycle of Vs are slow
compared to that pass the gap at Vs=0.

Figure 3.4: Bunching process

----------- 1
Similarly, the distances for the electrons at ta and tc are

8
 (2)

(3)

From the velocity modulation

Maximum velocity occurs at π/2,so that

----------------------------------------------4

Minimum velocity occurs at -π/2,so that

-----------------------------------------------5

Substituting Eqs 5 and 4 in 3 and 2

--------------6

The necessary condition for those electrons at ta,tb,and tc to meet at the same distance ∆L
is

----------------------------7

---------------------------------8

9
Consequently

------------------------------------------------9

------------------------------------------10

The transit time for velocity-modulated electrons to travel at a distance L is given by above
eqs

--------------11

--------------------------------------12

Multiplying by ᾢob both sides of the above equation,We get

----------------13

In the above equation,L/v0=T0 is the transit time

------------------14

------------------------------------------------------15

Where ᶿ0=dc transit angle between cavities

10
N= number of electron transit cycle in the drift space

By expanding 14,we get the value of the bunching parameter

Where ------------------16

-------------------------------------17
Is defined as the bunching parameter of the klystron. Substituting eq 15 and 17,we get

3.2.2 Reflex Klystron or Repeller Klystron

Another tube based on velocity modulation, and used to generate microwave
energy, is the reflex klystron (repeller klystron). The reflex klystron contains a reflector
plate, referred to as the repeller, instead of the output cavity used in other types of
klystrons. The electron beam is modulated as it was in the other types of klystrons by
passing it through an oscillating resonant cavity, but here the similarity ends.
The feedback required to maintain oscillations within the cavity is obtained by
reversing the beam and sending it back through the cavity. The electrons in the beam are
velocity-modulated before the beam passes through the cavity the second time and will
give up the energy required to maintain oscillations. The electron beam is turned around
by a negatively charged electrode that repels the beam (“repeller”). This type of klystron
oscillator is called a reflex klystron because of the reflex action of the electron beam.

11
 Figure 3.5: Schematic of Reflex Klystron and applegate diagram

Repeller klystrons are often used in older radar sets as local oscillators or as
oscillators in measurement sets. If the voltage feed is keyed, then the repeller

klystron can be used for RF-pulse generation too, but as self-oscillating tube it provides
a non-coherent oscillation only.

12
Modes and o/p characteristics

The output frequency and the output power vary with the change in repeller voltage for
different modes are shown in below figure. These modes are called mode curves.
Figure 3. 6: Different Modes Curves

The oscillation frequency is determined by the frequency of resonance of the output

cavity,This is called as electronics tuning range of reflex klystron
o/p characteristics:
The adjustment of repeller and anode voltage is in such a way that the bunch appears
exactly at any of the +ve maximum voltage of the RF signal, which is necessary for
reflex klystron to undergo oscilation.The oscillations cab be achieved only for some
combination of anode and repeller voltages. The voltage or output characteristics of
reflex klystron are shown in the below figure 3.7

13
 Figure 3.7 o/p characteristics

Electronic Tuning :
The nature of the variation of output power and frequency by adjustment of the repeller
voltage is calld the electronic tuning.It can be measured by electronic tuning
sensitivity(ETS).This can be determined by considering the slpe of the frequency of the
modes.
We know the equations

3.3 M-type – cross-field effects:

14
 Figure 3.8 Classification of Cross field devices

3.3.1 Magnetron
In 1921 Albert Wallace Hull invented the magnetron as a microwave tube. During
World War II it was developed by John Randall and Henry Boot to a powerful
microwave generator for Radar applications.
Magnetrons function as self-excited microwave oscillators. Crossed electron and
magnetic fields are used in the magnetron to produce the high-power output required in
radar equipment. These multicavity devices may be used in radar transmitters as either
pulsed or cw oscillators at frequencies ranging from approximately 600 to 96,000
megahertz. The relatively simple construction has the disadvantage, that the Magnetron
usually can work only on a constructively fixed frequency.

15
 Figure 3.9: Magnetron М 29Г of the old russian Radar “Bar Lock”

Figure 3.10 Cutaway view of a magnetron

Physical construction of a magnetron

The magnetron is classed as a diode because it has no grid. The anode of a
magnetron is fabricated into a cylindrical solid copper block. The cathode and filament
are at the center of the tube and are supported by the filament leads. The filament leads
are large and rigid enough to keep the cathode and filament structure fixed in position.
The cathode is indirectly heated and is constructed of a high- emission material. The 8
up to 20 cylindrical holes around its circumference are resonant cavities. The cavities

16
control the output frequency. A narrow slot runs from each cavity into the central portion
of the tube dividing the inner structure into as many segments as there are cavities.

Figure 3.11 Forms of the plate of magnetrons Figure 3.12 The electron
path under the influence of
different strength of the
magnetic field

The open space between the plate and the cathode is called the interaction space.
In this space the electric and magnetic fields interact to exert force upon the electrons.
The magnetic field is usually provided by a strong, permanent magnet mounted around
the magnetron so that the magnetic field is parallel with the axis of the cathode.
The form of the cavities varies, as shown in Figure 3.11. The output lead is usually a
probe or loop extending into one of the tuned cavities and coupled into a waveguide or
coaxial line.
1. slot- type
2. vane- type
3. rising sun- type
4. hole-and-slot- type

17
Figure 3.13: The high-frequency electrical field Figure 3.14: Rotating space-
charge wheel in an twelve-cavity
magnetron

Basic Magnetron Operation

As when all velocity-modulated tubes the electronic events at the production
microwave frequencies at a Magnetron can be subdivided into four phases too:
1. phase: production and acceleration of an electron beam
2. phase: velocity-modulation of the electron beam
3. phase: bunching the electrons, forming of a „Space-Charge Wheel”
4. phase: dispense energy to the ac field

18
Figure 3.15: Path of a single electron under influence of the electric RF-field

Phase: Production and acceleration of an electron beam

When no magnetic field exists, heating the cathode results in a uniform and direct
movement of the field from the cathode to the plate .The permanent magnetic field bends
the electron path. If the electron flow reaches the plate, so a large amount of plate current
is flowing. If the strength of the magnetic field is increased, the path of the electron will
have a sharper bend. Likewise, if the velocity of the electron increases, the field around
it increases and the path will bend more sharply. However, when the critical field value
is reached, as shown in the figure 20 as a red path, the electrons are deflected away from
the plate and the plate current then drops quickly to a very small value. When the field
strength is made still greater, the plate current drops to zero.

When the magnetron is adjusted to the cutoff, or critical value of the plate
current, and the electrons just fail to reach the plate in their circular motion, it can
produce oscillations at microwave frequencies.

Phase: Velocity-modulation of the electron beam

The electric field in the magnetron oscillator is a product of ac and dc fields. The
dc field extends radially from adjacent anode segments to the cathode. The ac fields,
extending between adjacent segments, are shown at an instant of maximum magnitude
of one alternation of the rf oscillations occurring in the cavities.

In the Figure 3.13 is shown only the assumed high-frequency electrical ac field. This ac
field work in addition to the to the permanently available dc field. The ac field of each
individual cavity increases or decreases the dc field like shown in the figure.
Well, the electrons which fly toward the anode segments loaded at the moment more
positively are accelerated in addition. These get a higher tangential speed. On the other
hand the electrons which fly toward the segments loaded at the moment more negatively
are slow down. These get consequently a smaller tangential speed.

1. Phase: Forming of a „Space-Charge Wheel”

On reason the different speeds of the electron groups a velocity modulation appears

19
therefore.
The cumulative action of many electrons returning to the cathode while others are
moving toward the anode forms a pattern resembling the moving spokes of a wheel
known as a “Space-Charge Wheel”, as indicated in Figure 19. The space-charge wheel
rotates about the cathode at an angular velocity of 2 poles (anode segments) per cycle of
the ac field. This phase relationship enables the concentration of electrons to
continuously deliver energy to sustain the rf oscillations.
One of the spokes just is near an anode segment which is loaded a little more negatively.
The electrons are slowed down and pass her energy on to the ac field. This state isn't
static, because both the ac- field and the wire wheel permanently circulate. The tangential
speed of the electron spokes and the cycle speed of the wave must be brought in
agreement so.
2. Phase: Dispense energy to the ac field
Recall that an electron moving against an E field is accelerated by the field and takes
energy from the field. Also, an electron dispense energy to a field and slows down if it
is moving in the same direction as the field (positive to negative). The electron spends
energy to each cavity as it passes and eventually reaches the anode when its energy is
expended. Thus, the electron has helped sustain oscillations because it has taken energy
from the dc field and given it to the ac field. This electron describes the path shown in
Figure 3.15 over a longer time period looked. By the multiple breaking of the electron
the energy of the electron is used optimally. The effectiveness reaches values up to 80%.

20
 Figure 3.16 Waveforms of the magnetron (Anode segments are represented
unwound) and a cuttaway view of a magnetron (vane-type), showing the
strapping rings and the slots.
Modes of Operation
The operation frequency depends on the sizes of the cavities and the interaction
space between anode and cathode. But the single cavities are coupled over the interaction
space with each other. Therefore several resonant frequencies exist for the complete
system. Two of the four possible waveforms of a magnetron with 8 cavities are in the
figure 8 represented. Several other modes of oscillation are possible (3/4π, 1/2 π, 1/4 π),
but a magnetron operating in the π mode has greater power and output and is the most
commonly used.

So that a stable operational condition adapts in the optimal pi mode, two constructive
measures are possible:
Strapping rings: The frequency of the π mode is separated from the frequency of the
other modes by strapping to ensure that the alternate segments have identical polarities.
For the pi mode, all parts of each strapping ring are at the same potential; but the two
rings have alternately opposing potentials. For other modes, however, a phase difference
exists between the successive segments connected to a given strapping ring which causes
current to flow in the straps.

21
Use of cavities of different resonance frequency E.g. such a variant is the anode form

“Rising Sun”

Figure 3.17: Magnetron coupling

Figure 3.18: Resonant cavities of an hole-and-slot- type magnetron with

inductive tuning elements

22
 Types of Magnetrons

There are three main types of Magnetrons.

Negative Resistance Type

 The negative resistance between two anode segments, is used.

 They have low efficiency.
 They are used at low frequencies <500MHz<500MHz.

Cyclotron Frequency Magnetrons

 The synchronism between the electric component and oscillating electrons is considered.

 Useful for frequencies higher than 100MHz.

Travelling Wave or Cavity Type

 The interaction between electrons and rotating EM field is taken into account.

 High peak power oscillations are provided.

 Useful in radar applications.

Cavity Magnetron

The Magnetron is called as Cavity Magnetron because the anode is made into resonant cavities
and a permanent magnet is used to produce a strong magnetic field, where the action of both of
these make the device work.

Construction of Cavity Magnetron

A thick cylindrical cathode is present at the center and a cylindrical block of copper, is fixed
axially, which acts as an anode. This anode block is made of a number of slots that acts as resonant
anode cavities.
23
The space present between the anode and cathode is called as Interaction space. The electric
field is present radially while the magnetic field is present axially in the cavity magnetron. This
magnetic field is produced by a permanent magnet, which is placed such that the magnetic lines

are parallel to cathode and perpendicular to the electric field present between the anode and the
cathode.

The following figure show the constructional details of a cavity magnetron and the magnetic lines
of flux present, axially.

Figure 3.19 constructional details of a cavity magnetron and the magnetic lines of flux

This Cavity Magnetron has 8 cavities tightly coupled to each other. An N-cavity
magnetron has N modes of operations. These operations depend upon the frequency and the phase
of oscillations. The total phase shift around the ring of this cavity resonators should be 2nπ
where n is an integer.
If ϕv represents the relative phase change of the AC electric field across adjacent cavities, then

24
 Which means that N2N2 mode of resonance can exist if NN is an even number.

This is called as the Zero mode, because there will be no RF electric field between the anode and
the cathode. This is also called as Fringing Field and this mode is not used in magnetrons.
Operation of Cavity Magnetron
When the Cavity Klystron is under operation, we have different cases to consider. Let us go
through them in detail.
Case 1
If the magnetic field is absent, i.e. B = 0, then the behavior of electrons can be observed in the
following figure. Considering an example, where electron a directly goes to anode under radial
electric force.

25
 Figure 3.20: Movement of Electron Path when B=0

Case 2

If there is an increase in the magnetic field, a lateral force acts on the electrons. This can be
observed in the following figure, considering electron b which takes a curved path, while both
forces are acting on it.

26
 Figure 3.21 Movement of Electron b with small magnetic field

Radius of this path is calculated as

R=mv/eB

It varies proportionally with the velocity of the electron and it is inversely proportional to the
magnetic field strength.

Case 3

If the magnetic field B is further increased, the electron follows a path such as the electron c, just
grazing the anode surface and making the anode current zero. This is called as "Critical magnetic
field" (Bc), which is the cut-off magnetic field. Refer the following figure 3.22 for better
understanding.

Case 4
If the magnetic field is made greater than the critical field,
B>BcB>Bc

27
Then the electrons follow a path as electron d, where the electron jumps back to the cathode,
without going to the anode. This causes "back heating" of the cathode. Refer the following figure.

.
Figure 3.22 Movement of Electron c with small magnetic field

Figure 3.23 Movement of electron d

28
This is achieved by cutting off the electric supply once the oscillation begins. If this is continued,
the emitting efficiency of the cathode gets affected.
Operation of Cavity Magnetron with Active RF Field
We have discussed so far the operation of cavity magnetron where the RF field is absent
in the cavities of the magnetron staticcase. Let us now discuss its operation when we have an
active RF field.
As in TWT, let us assume that initial RF oscillations are present, due to some noise transient. The
oscillations are sustained by the operation of the device. There are three kinds of electrons emitted
in this process, whose actions are understood as electrons a, b and c, in three different cases.
Case 1
When oscillations are present, an electron a, slows down transferring energy to oscillate. Such
electrons that transfer their energy to the oscillations are called as favored electrons. These
electrons are responsible for bunching effect.
Case 2

In this case, another electron, say b, takes energy from the oscillations and increases its velocity.
As and when this is done,
It bends more sharply.
It spends little time in interaction space.
It returns to the cathode.
These electrons are called as unfavored electrons. They don't participate in the bunching effect.
Also, these electrons are harmful as they cause "back heating".
Case 3
In this case, electron c, which is emitted a little later, moves faster. It tries to catch up with electron
a. The next emitted electron d, tries to step with a. As a result, the favored electrons a, c and
d form electron bunches or electron clouds. It called as "Phase focusing effect".
This whole process is understood better by taking a look at the following figure.

29
 Figure 3.23 Phase focusing effect

Figure A shows the electron movements in different cases while figure B shows the electron clouds
formed. These electron clouds occur while the device is in operation. The charges

present on the internal surface of these anode segments, follow the oscillations in the cavities.
This creates an electric field rotating clockwise, which can be actually seen while performing a
practical experiment.

While the electric field is rotating, the magnetic flux lines are formed in parallel to the cathode,
under whose combined effect, the electron bunches are formed with four spokes, directed in
regular intervals, to the nearest positive anode segment, in spiral trajectories.

30
 - Power output – efficiency
- Hull cut off magnetic equation is

Hull cut off voltage is

Hartree conditions:

Hartee voltage is an important specification of magnetron.Magnetrons are designed to operate in π

mode where the phase difference between adjacent resonators is 180°.

For strong interaction between the wave on anode structure and the electron beam, the
phase velocity of wave should be nearly equal to drift velocity vΦ and the oscillations for π
mode start at beam voltage

Voh = (2πf/N)*Bo*(b²- a²) ..................... Hartee volatge

where

f =operating frequency
N =number of resonators
b= anode radius
a= cathode radius
Bo = applied magnetic field.

31
 3.4 MICROWAVE DIODES

3.4.1 PIN DIODE

• The PIN diode found its first applications in 1952 as a low frequency high power
rectifier. It was also used in a number of microwave applications

• A PIN diode is a diode with a wide, undoped intrinsic semiconductor region between a p-
type semiconductor and an n-type semiconductor region.

The p-type and n-type regions are typically heavily doped because they are used for ohmic
contacts

Layers

• P-type layer

• Intrinsic layer

• N-type layer

Figure 3.24 Structure of PIN Diode

32
 • The intrinsic region comprises of the undoped, or virtually undoped semiconductor, and
in most PIN diodes it is very thin - of the order of between 10 and 200 microns.

• PIN diodes are widely made of silicon upto 1980 later gallium arsenide

Working of PIN Diode

• In any PN junction, the P region contains holes

Similarly the N region has been doped to contain excess electrons

• .

• The region between the P and N regions contains no charge carriers as any holes or electrons
combine

• If the diode is forward biased, the carriers enter the depletion region (including the intrinsic
region) and as the two carrier types meet, current starts to flow.

• The carrier concentration, i.e. holes and electrons is very much higher than the intrinsic level
carrier concentration.

• Due to this high level injection level, the electric field extends deeply (almost the entire
length) into the region.

• This electric field helps in speeding up of the transport of charge carriers from p to n region,
which results in faster operation of the diode, making it a suitable device for high frequency
operations.

• When forward-biased, it acts like a current-controlled variable resistance.

When reverse-biased, the pin diode acts like a nearly constant capacitance

PIN diode characteristics

33
 • Due to the intrinsic layer -high reverse breakdown voltage, and a low level of
capacitance, and there are also other properties such as carrier storage when it is forward
biased that enable it to be used for certain microwave applications.

Biasing:

• Unbiased : Diffusion of electron across the junction and depletion region is formed

• Forward Bias: Injected Carrier concentration- the electric field extends deeply-speeding
up the device-suitable for high frequency application

• Reverse Bias:

As the reverse bias voltage is increased the depletion layer thickness increases. Device behaves
as variable capacitor. At a voltage called swept voltage the device behaves as a constant
capacitor

PIN Diode VI Characteristics

34
 Figure 3.25 The forward series resistance characteristics

• The pin diode is used as a dc-controlled microwave switch operated by rapid changes
in bias or as a modulating device that takes advantage of the variable forward-resistance
characteristic.

• A high-frequency signal can be modulated (varied) by a lower-frequency bias variation.

A pin diode can also be used in attenuator applications because its resistance can be
controlled by the amount of current.

PIN diode uses and advantages

35
 • High voltage rectifier: The PIN diode can be used as a high voltage rectifier. The
intrinsic region provides a greater separation between the PN and N regions, allowing
higher reverse voltages to be tolerated.

• RF switch: The PIN diode makes an ideal RF switch. The intrinsic layer between the P
and N regions increases the distance between them. This also decreases the capacitance
between them, thereby increasing he level of isolation when the diode is reverse biased.

• Photodetector: As the conversion of light into current takes place within the depletion
region of a photdiode, increasing the depletion region by adding the intrinsic layer
improves the performance by increasing he volume in which light conversion occurs

3.4.2 AVALANCHE TRANSIT TIME DEVICES

The process of having a delay between voltage and current, in avalanche together with transit
time, through the material is said to be Negative resistance. The devices that helps to make a
diode exhibit this property are called as Avalanche transit time devices.

Examples:

IMPATT, TRAPATT, and BARITT diodes

IMPATT Diode

This is a high-power semiconductor diode, used in high frequency microwave

applications. The full form IMPATT is IMPact ionization Avalanche Transit Time diode.

36
 Figure 3.26 Structure of IMPACT DIODE

The IMPATT microwave diode uses avalanche breakdown combined and the charge carrier
transit time to create a negative resistance region which enables it to act as an oscillator.

37
 Figure 3.27 Constructional Detail of IMPATT

• The IMPATT diode has a very similar I-V characteristic to any other form of PN junction
diode.

• It conducts in the forward direction once the turn on voltage has been reached.

• In the reverse direction it blocks current flow, until the diode breakdown voltage is
reached.

• At this point avalanche breakdown occurs and current flows in the reverse direction.

Figure 3.28 IMPATT diode VI characteristics

38
 Figure 3.29 IMPATT diode doping profile

• Due to the heavy doping in the p-region the depletion region will be mostly in the n –
region

• In the electric field distribution of IMPATT

(1) Avalanche region ………extreme high electric field strength –charge multiplication in
RB

(2) Drift region………………… carriers generated during drift

Operation:- A very high voltage 400 kV/cm is applied to the IMPATT diode, resulting in a
very high current. A normal diode would easily break down under this condition, but IMPATT
diode is constructed such that it will withstand these conditions repeatedly. Such a high
potential gradient back biasing the diode causes a flow of minority carriers across the junction.

If it is now assumed that oscillations exist, we may consider the effect of a positive swing
of the RF voltage superimposed on top of the high dc voltage. Electron and hole velocity has
now become so high that these carriers form additional holes and electrons by

39
knocking them out of the crystal structure, by so called impact ionization. We have two steps
to understand the operation-
Step I-These additional carriers continue the process at the junction and the voltage will
be exceeded during the whole of the +ve RF cycle. The avalanche current multiplication will
be taking place during this entire time. Since avalanche is a multiplication process, it is not
instantaneous or we can say it is a cumulative process. This process takes time such that the
current pulse maximum, at the junction, occurs at the instant when the RF voltage across the
diode is zero and going negative. A 900 phase difference between voltage and current has been
obtained.
Step II- The current pulse in the IMPATT diode is situated at the junction. However it
does not stay there because of the reverse bias, the current pulse flows to the cathode, at a drift
velocity depending on the presence of the high dc field. The time taken by the pulse to reach
the cathode depends on this velocity and on the thickness of the highly doped n+ layer. The
thickness of the drift space is adjusted such that time taken for current pulse to arrive at the
cathode corresponds to further 900 phase difference.

Thus voltage and current are 1800 out of phase and a dynamic RF negative resistance has
been proved to exist. In summary, negative resistance phenomenon is taken into account by
using
1. The impact multiplication avalanche effect, which causes the minority current to
lag the microwave output voltage by 900. phase shift
2. The effect of transit time through the drift region, this results in the external
current lagging the microwave voltage by a further 900 phase shift.

TRAPATT Diode
An TRAPATT diode (Trapped Plasma Avalanche Triggered Transit-Time), is a very high
efficiency microwave generator, capable of operating from several hundred MHz to several
GHz. It is derived from the IMPATT diode and is closely related to it.The basic operation of
the TRAPATT oscillator is a semiconductor p-n junction diode reverse biased

40
to current densities well in excess of these encountered in normal avalanche operation.

• Make use of transit time along with the effect of avalanche

• Frequency of operation 1-3Khz

• Noise figure 60dB

• It works with low power dissipation

• It works based on plasma avalanche trigger

• The available structures are p+nn+ or n+ p p+

• It provides high efficiency than IMPATT diode

Figure 3.30 TRAPATT diode Structure

• The N type layer is sandwiched between the p+ and n+ layer(high doped material)

• P+ is highly doped than N and doping concentration is also high

• Charges are drifted and plasma is trapped

41
 • Storing the plasma as well as drifting the charges

• A plasma is generally a mix of these positively charged ions and

negatively charged electrons.

• A source is connected and pulse signal is initiated for

 Generation of plasma and extraction of plasma

Figure 3.30 TRAPATT operating characteristics

AB-charging phase

BC- plasma formation

CD –creation of dense charge particles

42
DE –plasma extraction

EF- residual extraction

FG-charging phase

• Plasma extraction

Highly energized charged particles drifted

• Residual extraction

Dense charge particles will get drifted

• A: At A, charge carriers due to thermal generation results in charging of the diode like a
linear capacitance.

• A-B: At this point, the magnitude of the electric field increases. When a sufficient number
of carriers are generated, the electric field is depressed throughout the depletion region
causing the voltage to decrease from B to C.

• C: This charge helps the avalanche to continue and a dense plasma of electrons and holes
is created. The field is further depressed so as not to let the electrons or holes out of the
depletion layer, and traps the remaining plasma.

• D: The voltage decreases at point D. A long time is required to clear the plasma as the total
plasma charge is large compared to the charge per unit time in the external current.

• Tha avalanche zone will quickly sweep across most of the diode and the transit time of the
carriers is represented as

The transit time calculated here is the time between the injection and the collection. The
repeated action increases the output to make it an amplifier, whereas a microwave low pass
filter connected in shunt with the circuit can make it work as an oscillator.
43
 Applications

• There are many applications of this diode.

• Low power Doppler radars

• Local oscillator for radars

• Microwave beacon landing system

• Radio altimeter

• Phased array radar, etc.

TEXT BOOK / REFERENCE BOOKS

1. David M. Pozar, “Microwave Engineering”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
2. Samuel Y Liao, “Microwave Devices & Circuits”, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall of India,
2008.
3. Kulkarni M., "Microwave and Radar Engineering", 4th Edition, Umesh Publication, 2010.
4. Annapurna Das and Sisir K Das, “Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Tata McGraw Hill, 2010.
5. M.M.Radmanesh, “RF & Microwave Electronics Illustrated”, Pearson Education, 2007.
6. Robert E.Colin, “Foundations for Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill,
2001.

44
 PART: A
1. Write the classification of microwave tubes
2. Name the two configuration of klystron
3. Define reflex klystron.
4. What are modes available in avalanche device?
5. What is transit time?
6. Why the output cavity is called as catcher cavity
7. What is drift space?
8. Define bunching
9. Define velocity modulation
10. Mention the disadvantage of IMPATT diodes
11. What is negative resistance in Gunn diode?

PART: B

1. Draw and explain the operation of Reflex klystron oscillator

2. Explain the construction and working of cylindrical
magnetron and derive Hull – cutoff condition
3. Explain why the Gunn diode in not a high power and/or high
efficiency mode.
4. Explain the operation and salient features of PIN diode switch
5. What are avalanche transit time device? Explain the
operation, construction and applications of IMPATT.
6. Compare IMPATT &TRAPATT
 SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

UNIT – IV- RF AND MICROWAVE ENGINEERING – SEC1405

1
 IV MICROWAVE MEASUREMENTS

4.1 INTRODUCTION
In low frequency circuits parameters such as voltage, current, etc can be measured
and from these impedance, power factor and phase angle can be calculated. At microwave
frequencies it is more convenient to measure power instead of V and I. Properties of devices
and circuits at microwave frequencies i.e characterized by S- parameters, power, frequency
and VSWR and noise figure. Direct microwave measuring devices are vector network
analyzers, spectrum analyzers and power meters. Due to their complications and high cost,
microwave measurements in lab are often carried out using 1 kHz square wave modulating
signal which modulates the microwave test signal. Measurements of microwave power,
frequency, VSWR and losses in the network have certain procedures. The procedures must
be followed in order to obtain accurate results.

Important measurement devices

 The tunable detectors are used to demodulate the signal and couple the required
output to high frequency scope analyzer. The low frequency demodulated output is
detected using non reciprocal detector diode mounted in the microwave transmission
line.

 Slotted section with line carriage is a microwave sectioned coaxial line connecting a
coaxial E-field probe which penetrates inside a rectangular waveguide slotted section.
The longitudinal slot is cut along the center of the waveguide broad walls. The probe is
made to move along the slotted wall which samples the electric field proportional to
probe voltage.
 Main purpose of slotted section with line carriage is

1. For determination of location of voltage standing wave maxima and minima

along the line.
2. Measure the VSWR and standing wave pattern.
3. Wavelength.

2
 4. Impedance.
5. Reflection co-efficient.
6. Return loss measurement.

4.2 VSWR METER

VSWR meter is a highly sensitive, high gain, low noise voltage amplifier tuned normally at fixed
frequency of 1KHZ of which microwave signals modulated. This meter indicates calibrated
VSWR reading for any loads.

VSWR is defined as the ratio of the maximum voltage to the minimum voltage in standing
wave pattern along the length of a transmission line structure. It varies from 1 to (plus) infinity and
is always positive.These VSWR meters are ideal for measuring and monitoring the VSWR at the
transmitter to ensure that it does not experience a high level of VSWR.Although these VSWR
meters are not always particularly accurate, they can provide an excellent way of measuring
VSWR easily and in a cost effective manner.

• A VSWR meter is just calibrated dc voltmeter detecting the rectified DC voltage from the
crystal diode detector.

• It can measure VSWR as well voltage

Figure 4.1VSWR Meter

3
• VSWR and the reflection coefficients (C) are very important parameters for measuring
load impedance and the degree of matching with the line
• By moving the crystal diode detector carriage of the slotted waveguide, VSWR (S) can
be measured by noting Vmax and Vmin on the VSWR meter, giving

S = Vmax/Vmin

• We can measure VSWR directly on the scale of the meter by calibrating it by adjusting
the gain knob to show maximum scale deflection of unity VSWR at the carriage
detector position of Vmax
• Now we move the detector carriage to the minimum Vmin reading on the meter, and
here the reading on the VSWR scale of the meter gives directly the VSWR of the line in
dB
• If we read the voltages at these two locations, the ratio of the Vmax/Vmin will be same
as VSWR read on the VSWR meter
• This can be noted just by seeing the two scales (voltage and VSWR) of the meter; e.g. if at
the maximum scale deflection (VSWR = 1) the voltage is l0 mV then at V = 5 mV, on the
scale voltage will correspond to Vmax/Vmin = 10/5 = 2 = VSWR.

• The overall gain is normally 125 dB, adjustable by a coarse and a fine knob. There are
three scales on the VSWR meter:

(a) Normal VSWR for S = 1–10.

(b) Expanded VSWR for S = 1–1.3

(c) dB scale for 0–2 dB, for measuring VSWR directly in dB.

• An input selector switch is also there for different inputs for crystal diode, and this is for
low current (4.5 mA) and high current (8.75 mA).

4
4.3 Power Meter

 A microwave power meter is an instrument which measures the electrical power

at microwave frequencies typically in the range 100 MHz to 40 GHz.

 A microwave power meter will consist of a measuring head contains the actual power
sensing element, connected via a cable to the meter which displays the power reading.

 The head may be referred to as a power sensor or mount.

 Different power sensors can be used for different frequencies or power levels.

 In most power sensor and meter combinations the sensor would convert the microwave
power into an analogue voltage which would be read by the meter and converted into a
power reading.

 Microwave power meters have a wide bandwidth—they are not frequency-selective

Types of POWER METER

There are a number of ways in which RF power (including microwave power) can be measured.
As a result there are different classes of test instrument that can be used for RF power
measurement:

In-line RF power meters:

 These RF power meters take a sample of the power flowing along a feed-line and use this
to indicate the power level.

 These inline RF power meters are used on live systems, such as radio transmitters as a
check of the outgoing power.

 They are normally directional and can be used to check the power travelling in either
direction.

5
 • Absorptive RF power meters:

 These RF power meters absorb the power they measure.

 Simple meters can be analogue types that are formed in a single unit consisting of an RF
load, the sensing diodes and an analogue meter.

 The more advanced types utilise an external power sensor that can be connected close to
the power source.

 Measurements made by absorptive RF power meters are frequency insensitive - they

measure the total power entering them regardless of frequency (within the overall
frequency limitations of the instrument).

 The absorptive RF power meters with external sensors typically have either digital
readouts, or many these days provide a display on which the result can be seen in the most
convenient format.

When selecting an RF power meter or a microwave power meter, it is important to select the
correct type of power sensor

 Power is a measure of energy per unit time and it is typically measured in watts - this is a
energy transfer at the rate of one Joule per second.

 Many power levels are expressed in terms of dBm and dBW. As a decibel is a ratio, these
are power levels expressed in terms of decibels relative a milliwatt and a watt respectively.

 Wherever RF signals are present it is necessary to be able to measure the power levels and
dedicated RF power meters or watt meters

4.4 Spectrum Analyzer

• Most commonly used item of test equipment that displays waveforms is the oscilloscope

• This test instrument displays signals in what is termed the time domain, i.e. amplitude
against time

6
• core test instruments for any RF design or test laboratory

• enables many waveforms to be displayed and the performance of circuits. modules and
equipment to be analyzed.

• The oscilloscope displays the amplitude of waveforms on the vertical axis against time on
the horizontal axis - signals are displayed in the time domain.

• When looking at the spectrum of a signal, the amplitude of signals is displayed in the
vertical axis and frequency in the horizontal axis - signals are displayed in the frequency
domain.

• By looking at the amplitudes of signals at different frequencies it is possible to measure

the amplitudes of these signals, find what signals are present etc.

Figure 4.2 Frequency Domain spectrums

• The spectrum analyzer is a particularly important item of test equipment for anyone
undertaking the test and measurement of circuits and systems involving radio frequency
or RF signals

7
• In addition to this, spectrum analyzers may also be used for a variety of other
applications including audio analysis and the like.

Figure 4.3 Spectrum Analyzer

• Spectrum analysers normally use a linear scale for the frequency on the horizontal or x-
axis, but they normally use a logarithmic scale for the amplitude on the vertical or y-axis.

• By using a logarithmic or decibel scale for the amplitude scale, it is possible to see
signals with large differences in amplitude.

• Signals being viewed on a spectrum analyzer may differ by 60dB, 70 dB or more. Using
a logarithmic scale is the only way to see these signals on the same screen.

• For some applications it may be necessary to use a linear amplitude scale, and often there
is a switch to accomplish this.

• The spectrum analyzer can be used for a number of tasks:

8
 • The overall spectrum of a modulated signal to see whether it is wide enough or
too narrow, etc. If it is too wide then it could cause interference to users in
adjacent channels.

• To investigate whether any spurious or unwanted signals are present. These

signals could cause interference to users on other frequencies is signals are
transmitted.

• To find out whether a signal is on the right frequency, and not in another band .

• Used in measuring power,frequency,phase noise on the signal

• Spectrum analysers are often used when undertaking EMI & EMI
(electromagnetic interference and electromagnetic compatibility) measurements

Spectrum analyzer types

• Superheterodyne spectrum analyzer:

– This type of spectrum analyzer uses the superheterodyne principle. A local

oscillator converts the incoming signal down to a fixed frequency IF. By sweeping
the local oscillator using a ramp voltage, it is possible to scan a range of
frequencies. If the ramp voltage is also linked to the horizontal axis of the display
and the vertical axis to the detected level of the signal, then a display of the
spectrum is seen.

• FFT spectrum analyzer:

– The Fast Fourier Transform, FFT spectrum analyzer uses digital techniques. The
incoming signal is sampled and successive samples are passed to an FFT processor
to process the signal. The FFT processor provides all the signal processing so that
spectrum information can be passed on to a control and display processor to be
displayed.

• Real time spectrum analyzer :

– One of the issues with an FFT analyzer is that transient signals can be missed
between successive samples for the FFT processor. To overcome this, a real time
spectrum analyzer takes samples that overlap in time. In this way, and transient
that occurs will be captured and can be analyzed. Real time spectrum analyzers
are particularly useful for analyzing RF systems that are driven by processors as
glitches and transients can occur. They are also very useful for capturing various
forms of modulation and for frequency hopping systems.

9
 • USB spectrum analyzer:

-Although USB spectrum analyzers are possibly not a different type of analyzer as
such, they probably warrant a section as they provide a very cost effective way of
creating a spectrum analyzer. By capturing the waveform and undertaking the
processing in a specifically designed FPGA, the processed information can be passed
to a computer over a USB interface to be displayed. This saves considerable cost and
space

Sweep spectrum analyser basics

• Uses the same superheterodyne principle used in many radio receivers as the underlying
principle on which its operation depends.

• The superheterodyne principle uses a mixer and a locally generated local oscillator signal
to translate the frequency.

• The signal entering the front end is translated to another frequency, typically lower in
frequency.

• Using a fixed frequency filter in the intermediate frequency section of the equipment
enables high performance filters to be used, and the analyzer or receiver input frequency
can be changed by altering the frequency of the local oscillator signal entering the mixer.

• The frequency of the local oscillator governs the frequency of the signal that will pass
through the intermediate frequency filter.

• This is swept in frequency (linearly increasing in frequency) so that it covers the required
band.

• The sweep voltage used to control the frequency of the local oscillator also controls the
sweep of the scan on the display.

• In this way the position of the scanned point on the screen relates to the position or
frequency of the local oscillator and hence the frequency of the incoming signal.

• Also any signals passing through the filter are further amplified, detected and normally
converted to a logarithmic scale because of the enormous range of input levels received
and then it is passed to the display Y axis.

10
 Figure 4.3 a Block Diagram of Spectrum Analyzer

Elements of a sweep spectrum analyzer

RF attenuator:

• The first element a signal reaches on entering the test instrument is an RF attenuator.
Early models used a manually switched attenuator, but modern analyzers normally have
this controlled by the processor in the test instrument.

• Its purpose is to adjust the level of the signal entering the mixer to its optimum level. If
the signal level is too high, not only may the reading fall outside the display, but also the
mixer performance may not be optimum.

Low pass filter and pre-selector:

• This circuit follows the attenuator and is included to remove out-of-band signals. This
filter in the spectrum analyzer prevents unwanted signals from mixing with the local
oscillator and generating unwanted responses at the IF. These would appear as signals on
the display and as such must be removed.

Mixer:

• The mixer must be able to operate over a very wide range of signals and offer very low
levels of spurious responses.

11
• Any spurious signals that are generated may give rise to spurious response that will be
displayed along with the real signals on the display.

• Spurious signals are unintended signals that can result from harmonics, intermodulation,
frequency conversion, or EMI (electromagnetic interference).

IF amplifier:

• Signals leaving the mixer are generally low level and they need to be amplified.

• The gain of the stage is adjustable, typically in 10dB stages.

• Altering the gain here alters the position of the signal on the vertical scale of the
analyzer. The IF gain has to be used in conjunction with the RF gain control – in modern
analyzers the two are normally linked and adjusted to give the best overall performance.

• Too high a level of IF gain will increase the front end noise level which may result in
low level signals being masked.

• Accordingly the RF gain control should generally be kept as high as possible without
overloading the mixer.

• In this way the noise performance of the overall test instrument is optimized.

IF filter:

– The IF filters restrict the bandwidth that is viewed, effectively increasing the
frequency resolution.

– However this is at the cost of a slower scan rate.

– Narrowing the IF bandwidth reduces the noise floor and enables lower level
spurious signals to be viewed.

– Local oscillator:

– The local oscillator within the spectrum analyzer is naturally a key element in the whole
operation of the unit.

– Its performance governs many of the overall performance parameters of the whole
analyser.

– It must be capable of being tuned over a very wide range of frequencies to enable the
analyzer to scan over the required range.
12
 – Ramp generator:
The ramp generator drives the sweep of the local oscillator and also the display. In this
way the horizontal axis of the display is directly linked to the frequency.

– Envelope or level detector:

The envelope detector converts the signal from the IF filter into a signal voltage
that can be passed to the display. As the level detector has to accommodate very large
signal differences, linearity and wide dynamic range are essential.

Display:

• In many respects the display is the heart of the test instrument as this is where the signal
spectra are viewed.

• The overall display section of the spectrum analyser contains a significant amount of
processing to enable the signals to be viewed in a fashion that is easy comprehend.

• Items such as markers for minimum signal, maximum peak, auto peak, highlighting and
many more elements are controlled by the signal processing in this area.

4.5 Power Measurement

 Power is defined as the quantity of energy dissipated or stored per unit time.

 Microwave power is divided into three categories – low power (less than 10mW),
medium power (from 10mW to 10W) and high power (greater than 10w).

 The general measurement technique for average power is to attach a properly calibrated
sensor to the transmission line port at which the unknown power is to be measured.

 The output from the sensor is connected to an appropriate power meter. The RF power
to the sensor is turned off and the power meter zeroed. This operation is often referred to
as “zero setting” or “zeroing.” Power is then turned on.

 The sensor, reacting to the new input level, sends a signal to the power meter and the
new meter reading is observed.

 There are three popular devices for sensing and measuring average power at RF and

13
microwave frequencies. Each of the methods uses a different kind of device to convert
the RF power to a measurable DC or low frequency signal. The devices are the diode
detector, the bolometer and the thermocouple.

 Diode Detector

The low-barrier Schottky (LBS) diode technology which made it possible to construct
diodes with metal-semiconductor junctions for microwave frequencies that was very
rugged and consistent from diode to diode. These diodes, introduced as power sensors in
1974, were able to detect and measure power as low as −70 dBm (100 pW) at frequencies
up to 18 GHz.
 Bolometer Sensor:

Bolometers are power sensors that operate by changing resistance due to a change in
temperature. The change in temperature results from converting RF or microwave energy into
heat within the bolometric element.There are two principle types of bolometers, barretters and
thermistors. A barretter is a thin wire that has a positive temperature coefficient of resistance.
Thermistors are semiconductors with a negative temperature coefficient. Thermistor elements
are mounted in either coaxial or waveguide structures so they are compatible with common
transmission line systems used at microwave and RF frequencies.Power meters are constructed
from balanced bridge circuits. The principal parts of the power meter are two self-balancing
bridges, the meter-logic section, and the auto-zero circuit.

The RF Bridge, which contains the detecting thermistor, is kept in balance by automatically
varying the DC voltage Vrf, which drives that bridge. The compensating bridge, which
contains the compensating thermistor, is kept in balance by automatically varying the DC
voltage Vc, which drives that bridge. The power meter is initially zero-set (by pushing the
zero-set button) with no applied RF power by making Vc equal to Vrfo (Vrfo means Vrf with
zero RF power). After zero-setting, if ambient temperature variations change thermistor
resistance, both bridge circuits respond by applying the same new voltage to maintain balance.

14
  Thermocouple Sensors

Thermocouple sensors have been the detection technology of choice for sensing RF and
microwave power since their introduction in 1974. The two main reasons for this
evolution are:

1) they exhibit higher sensitivity than previous thermistor technology, and

2) they feature inherent square-law detection characteristic (input RF power is
proportional to DC voltage out). Since thermocouples are heat-based sensors, they are
true “averaging detectors.”Thermocouples are based on the fact that dissimilar metals
generate a voltage due to temperature differences at a hot and a cold junction of the two
metals. The power sensor contains two identical thermocouples on one chip, electrically
connected as in Figure 4.4.

Figure 4.4 Thermocouple power sensor

Measurement of Low Power

• The measurement of Microwave power around 0.01mW to 10mW, can be understood as

the measurement of low power.
• Bolometer is a device which is used for low Microwave power measurements. The
element used in bolometer could be of positive or negative temperature coefficient.
• For example, a barrater has a positive temperature coefficient whose resistance increases
with the increase in temperature.

15
• Thermistor has negative temperature coefficient whose resistance decreases with the
increase in temperature.
• Any of them can be used in the bolometer, but the change in resistance is proportional to
Microwave power applied for measurement.
• This bolometer is used in a bridge of the arms as one so that any imbalance caused,
affects the output.

Figure 4.5 Low power Measurement

• The millimeter here, gives the value of the current flowing.

• The battery is variable, which is varied to obtain balance, when an imbalance is caused
by the behavior of the bolometer.
• This adjustment which is made in DC battery voltage is proportional to the Microwave
power. The power handling capacity of this circuit is limited

16
 Measurement of Medium Power

• The measurement of Microwave power around 10mW to 1W, can be understood as the
measurement of medium power.
• A special load is employed, which usually maintains a certain value of specific heat. The
power to be measured, is applied at its input which proportionally changes the output
temperature of the load that it already maintains. The difference in temperature rise,
specifies the input Microwave power to the load.
• The bridge balance technique is used here to get the output. The heat transfer method is
used for the measurement of power, which is a Calorimetric technique.

Measurement of High Power

• The measurement of Microwave power around 10W to 50KW, can be understood as the
measurement of high power.
• The High Microwave power is normally measured by Calorimetric watt meters, which
can be of dry and flow type.
• The dry type is named so as it uses a coaxial cable which is filled with di-electric of high
hysteresis loss, whereas the flow type is named so as it uses water or oil or some liquid
which is a good absorber of microwaves.
• The change in temperature of the liquid before and after entering the load, is taken for the
calibration of values. The limitations in this method are like flow determination,
calibration and thermal inertia, etc.

17
 4.6 Measurement of Attenuation
• In practice, Microwave components and devices often provide some attenuation. The
amount of attenuation offered can be measured in two ways. They are − Power ratio
method and RF substitution method.
• Attenuation is the ratio of input power to the output power and is normally expressed in
decibels.
Attenuationin(dBs)=10logPin/Pout
Where Pin = Input power and Pout = Output power

(1) Power Ratio Method

In this method, the measurement of attenuation takes place in two steps.
 Step 1 − The input and output power of the whole Microwave bench is done without the
device whose attenuation has to be calculated.
• Step 2 − The input and output power of the whole Microwave bench is done with the
device whose attenuation has to be calculated. The ratio of these powers when compared,
gives the value of attenuation. The following figures are the two setups which explain
this.

Drawback − The power and the attenuation measurements may not be accurate, when the input
power is low and attenuation of the network is large.
(2) RF Substitution Method
In this method, the measurement of attenuation takes place in three steps.
 Step 1 − The output power of the whole Microwave bench is measured with the network
whose attenuation has to be calculated.
 Step 2 − The output power of the whole Microwave bench is measured by replacing the
network with a precision calibrated attenuator.
 Step 3 − Now, this attenuator is adjusted to obtain the same power as measured with the
network.

18
 Figure 4.6 Power Ratio Method

Figure 4.7 RF Substitution Method

19
 • The adjusted value on the attenuator gives the attenuation of the network directly. The
drawback in the above method is avoided here and hence this is a better procedure to
measure the attenuation.

Measurement of VSWR

In any Microwave practical applications, any kind of impedance mismatches lead to the
formation of standing waves. The strength of these standing waves is measured by Voltage
Standing Wave Ratio VSWR. The ratio of maximum to minimum voltage gives the VSWR, which
is denoted by S

The measurement of VSWR can be done in two ways, Low VSWR and High VSWR
measurements.

Measurement of Low VSWR S<10

The measurement of low VSWRVSWR can be done by adjusting the attenuator to get a reading
on a DC millivoltmeter which is VSWR meter. The readings can be taken by adjusting the slotted
line and the attenuator in such a way that the DC millivoltmeter shows a full scale reading as well
as a minimum reading.
Now these two readings are calculated to find out the VSWR of the network.
Measurement of High VSWR S>10
The measurement of high VSWR whose value is greater than 10 can be measured by a method
called the double minimum method. In this method, the reading at the minimum value is taken,
and the readings at the half point of minimum value in the crest before and the crest after are also
taken. This can be understood by the following figure.

20
Now, the VSWR can be calculated by a relation, given as −

As the two minimum points are being considered here, this is called as double minimum
method. Now, let us learn about the measurement of impedance.
Measurement of Impedance
.
Impedance Using the Slotted Line

In this method, impedance is measured using slotted line and load ZL and by using this,
Vmax and Vmin can be determined. In this method, the measurement of impedance takes place
in two steps.

Step 1 − Determining Vmin using load ZL.

Step 2 − Determining Vmin by short circuiting the load.
This is shown in the following figures.

21
 Figure 4.8 Measurement of attendance

• When we try to obtain the values of Vmax and Vmin using a load, we get certain values.
However, if the same is done by short circuiting the load, the minimum gets shifted, either to
the right or to the left. If this shift is to the left, it means that the load is inductive and if it the
shift is to the right, it means that the load is capacitive in nature. The following figure explains
this.

22
 Figure 4.9 Standing Waves
By recording the data, unknown impedance is calculated. The impedance and reflection
coefficient ρ can be obtained in both magnitude and phase.
Impedance Using the Reflectometer

Unlike slotted line, the Reflectometer helps to find only the magnitude of impedance and not the
phase angle. In this method, two directional couplers which are identical but differs in direction
are taken. These two couplers are used in sampling the incident power Pi and reflected power
Pr from the load. The reflectometer is connected as shown in the following figure. It is used to
obtain the magnitude of reflection coefficient ρρ, from which the impedance can be obtained.

23
 Figure 4.10 Standing Waves

From the reflectometer reading, we have

Where, zg is known wave impedance and z is unknown impedance.

Though the forward and reverse wave parameters are observed here, there will be no interference
due to the directional property of the couplers. The attenuator helps in maintaining low input
power.

24
 Measurement of Frequency
• Mechanical Technique
 Slotted Line method

Figure 4.11 Measurement of Frequency

• These minima are detected and the distance between them is measured. From which the
wavelength and frequency can be calculated by

25
 Figure 4.12 Measurement of Frequency using wave meter

• The cavity is coupled to the waveguide through an iris in the narrow wall of the waveguide.
If the frequency of the wave passing through the waveguide is different from the resonance
frequency of the cavity, the transmission is not affected.
• If these two frequencies coincide then the wave passing through the waveguide is

26
 attenuated due to power loss. It will be indicated as a dip in the meter.

Electronic Technique
 Counter Method
• An accurate measurement of microwave frequency can be measured here.
• The input signal is divided into two equal signals by a resistive power divider.
• These two parts of the signal are fed to 2 mixers.
• The mixer 1 is used in the input PLL (Phase Locked Loop) and the mixer 2 is used to
determine the harmonic number.
• The frequency f1 of the input PLL is also fed to the direct counter circuits.
• The input PLL consists of a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), mixer, an IF amplifier, a
phase detector and a gain control block.
• The VCO searches over its range until an IF signal equal to 20MHz is found.
• Phase lock occurs when the phase detector output sets the VCO frequency f1 such that

Figure 4.13 Measurement of Frequency using Counter Method

• By mixing IF2 with IF1 and rejecting 20 MHz and higher frequencies, nf0 is obtained.

27
 • Counting the number of zero crossing for the period of f0, determines the harmonic
number n of the phase lock loop.
• The input frequency is then calculated by presetting into IF ref counter, measuring f1 and
extending gate time according to number n

TEXT BOOK / REFERENCE BOOKS

1. David M. Pozar, “Microwave Engineering”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
2. Samuel Y Liao, “Microwave Devices & Circuits”, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall of India,
2008.
3. Kulkarni M., "Microwave and Radar Engineering", 4th Edition, Umesh Publication, 2010.
4. Annapurna Das and Sisir K Das, “Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Tata McGraw Hill, 2010.
5. M.M.Radmanesh, “RF & Microwave Electronics Illustrated”, Pearson Education, 2007.
6. Robert E.Colin, “Foundations for Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill,
2001.

28
 PART: A
1. What is VSWR meter?
2. Define power
3. What are the methods to detect microwave power?
4. What do you meant by slotted line?
5. What is spectrum analyzer?
6. What is network analyzer?
7. Mention the different types of dielectric constant
measurement.
8. Distinguish between low frequency measurements and
microwave
Measurements
9. What is the significance of VSWR measurement?
10. Name two methods to measure impedance

PART: B

1. Explain the operation of Network analyzer

2. Write short notes on
a. Low VSWR
b. High VSWR measurements
3. Explain about frequency Impedance measurement with neat
diagrams
4. Mention the possible errors in the VSWR measurements
5. Explain the attenuation loss measurement with neat diagram
6. Explain the operation of spectrum analyzer.

29
 V. MICROWAVE AND MILLIMETER SYSTEMS

5.1 INTRODUCTION TO MICROWAVE SYSTEMS

A microwave system consists of passive and active microwave components arranged to

perform a useful function. Probably the two most important examples are microwave
communication systems and microwave radar systems

System aspects of antenna

A transmitting antenna can be viewed as a device that converts a guided electromagnetic

wave on a transmission line into a plane wave propagating in free space. Thus, one side of an
antenna appears as an electrical circuit element, while the other side provides an interface with a
propagating plane wave. Antennas are inherently bidirectional; in that they can be used for both
transmit and receive functions. Figure 5.1 illustrates the basic

Figure 5.1 Basic operation of transmitting and receiving antenna

operation of transmitting and receiving antennas. The transmitter can be modeled as a Thevenin
source consisting of a voltage generator and series impedance, delivering a power Pt to the
transmitting antenna. A transmitting antenna radiates a spherical wave that, at large distances,
approximates a plane wave over a localized area. A receiving antenna intercepts a portion of an
incident plane wave, and delivers a receive power Pr to the receiver load impedance.

A wide variety of antennas have been developed for different applications, as

summarized in the following categories:

Wire antennas include dipoles, monopoles, loops, sleeve dipoles, Yagi–Uda arrays,
and related structures. Wire antennas generally have low gains, and are most often used at
lower frequencies (HF to UHF). They have the advantages of light weight, low cost, and
simple design.

Aperture antennas include open-ended waveguides, rectangular or circular horns,

reflectors, lenses, and reflect arrays. Aperture antennas are most commonly used at
microwave and millimeter wave frequencies, and have moderate to high gains.
2
 Printed antennas include printed slots, printed dipoles, and microstrip patch
antennas. These antennas can be made with photolithographic methods, with both
radiating elements and associated feed circuitry fabricated on dielectric substrates.
Printed antennas are most often used at microwave and millimeter wave frequencies, and
can be easily arrayed for high gain.

Array antennas consist of a regular arrangement of antenna elements with a feed

network. Pattern characteristics such as beam pointing angle and sidelobe levels can be
controlled by adjusting the amplitude and phase excitation of the array elements. An
important type of array antenna is the phased array, in which variable-phase shifters are
used to electronically scan the main beam of the antenna.

Fields and Power Radiated by an Antenna:

At large distances, where the localized near-zone fields are negligible, the
radiated electric field of an arbitrary antenna can be expressed as

where E¯ is the electric field vector, θˆ and φˆ are unit vectors in the spherical
coordinate system, r is the radial distance from the origin, and k0 = 2π/λ is the free-space
propagation constant, with wavelength λ = c/ f . Also defined in are the pattern functions,
Fθ (θ,φ) and Fφ(θ,φ). The interpretation is that this electric field propagates in the radial
direction with a phase variation of e− jk0r and an amplitude variation with distance of 1/r.
The electric field may be polarized in either the θˆ or φˆ direction, but not in the radial
direction, since this is a TEM wave. The magnetic fields associated with the electric field
can be found from as

The Poynting vector for this wave is given by

3
 and the time-average Poynting vector is

The far-field distance as the distance where the spherical wave front radiated by
an antenna becomes a close approximation to the ideal planar phase front of a plane
wave. This approximation applies over the radiating aperture of the antenna, and so it
depends on the maximum dimension of the antenna. If we call this maximum dimension
D, then the far-field distance is defined as

This result is derived from the condition that the actual spherical wave front
radiated by the antenna departs less than π/8 = 22.5◦ from a true plane wave front over
the maximum extent of the antenna. For electrically small antennas, such as short dipoles
and small loops, this result may give a far-field distance that is too small; in this case, a
minimum value of Rff = 2λ should be used.

Antenna Pattern Characteristics

The radiation pattern of an antenna is a plot of the magnitude of the far-zone field
strength versus position around the antenna, at a fixed distance from the antenna. Thus
the radiation pattern can be plotted from the pattern function Fθ (θ,φ) or Fφ(θ,φ), versus
either the angle θ (for an elevation plane pattern) or the angle φ (for an azimuthal plane
pattern). The choice of plotting either Fθ or Fφ is dependent on the polarization of the
antenna.

Beamwidth and directivity are both measures of the focusing ability of an

antenna: an antenna pattern with a narrow main beam will have a high directivity, while a
pattern with a wide beam will have a lower directivity. We might therefore expect a
direct relation between beamwidth and directivity, but in fact there is not an exact
relationship between these two quantities. This is because beamwidth is only dependent
on the size and shape of the main beam, whereas directivity involves integration of the
entire radiation pattern. Thus it is possible for many different antenna patterns to have the
same beamwidth but quite different directivities due to differences in sidelobes or the
presence of more than one main beam. With this qualification in mind, however, it is
possible to develop approximate relations between beamwidth and directivity that apply

4
with reasonable accuracy to a large number of practical antennas. One such
approximation that works well for antennas with pencil beam patterns is the following:

where θ1 and θ2 are the beamwidths in two orthogonal planes of the main beam,
in degrees. This approximation does not work well for omnidirectional patterns because
there is a well-defined main beam in only one plane for such patterns.

Antenna Gain

Antenna gain as the product of directivity and efficiency:

Gain is usually expressed in dB, as G(dB) = 10 log(G). Sometimes the effect of

impedance mismatch loss is included in the gain of an antenna; this is referred to as the
realized gain

Aperture Efficieny and Effective Area

Many types of antennas can be classified as aperture antennas, meaning that the
antenna has a well-defined aperture area from which radiation occurs. Examples include
reflector antennas, horn antennas, lens antennas, and array antennas. For such antennas, it
can be shown that the maximum directivity that can be obtained from an electrically large
aperture of area A is given as

An aperture efficiency as the ratio of the actual directivity of an aperture antenna

to the maximum directivity

Aperture efficiency is always less than or equal to unity

5
The Poynting vector has dimensions of W/m2, and the received power, Pr, has
dimensions of W, the proportionality constant must have units of area. Thus we write

where Ae is defined as the effective aperture area of the receive antenna. The effective
aperture area has dimensions of m2, and can be interpreted as the “capture area” of a
receive antenna, intercepting part of the incident power density radiated toward the
receive antenna.

The maximum effective aperture area of an antenna can be shown to be related to the
directivity of the antenna as

where λ is the operating wavelength of the antenna. For electrically large aperture
antennas the effective aperture area is often close to the actual physical aperture area.

Antenna Noise Temperature and G/T

If a receiving antenna has dissipative loss, so that its radiation efficiency ηrad is
less than unity, the power available at the terminals of the antenna is reduced by the
factor ηrad from that intercepted by the antenna (the definition of radiation efficiency is
the ratio of output to input power). This reduction applies to received noise power, as
well as received signal power, so the noise temperature of the antenna will be reduced
from the brightness temperature given in by the factor ηrad. In addition, thermal noise
will be generated internally by resistive losses in the antenna, and this will increase the
noise temperature of the antenna. In terms of noise power, a lossy antenna can be
modeled as a lossless antenna and an attenuator having a power loss factor of L = 1/ηrad.
Then, for the equivalent noise temperature of an attenuator, we can find the resulting
noise temperature seen at the antenna terminals as

The equivalent temperature TA is called the antenna noise temperature, and is a

combination of the external brightness temperature seen by the antenna and the thermal

6
noise generated by the antenna. As with other equivalent noise temperatures, the proper
interpretation of TA is that a matched load at this temperature will produce the same
available noise power as does the antenna. Note that this temperature is referenced at the
output terminals of the antenna; since an antenna is not a two-port circuit element, it does
not make sense to refer the equivalent noise temperature to its “input.” TA = Tb for a
lossless antenna with ηrad = 1. If the radiation efficiency is zero, meaning that the
antenna appears as a matched load and does not see any external background noise, then
it reduces to TA = Tp, due to the thermal noise generated by the losses. If an antenna is
pointed toward a known background temperature different than T0, then can be used to
determine its radiation efficiency.

The Friis Formula

A general radio system link is shown in Figure 5.2 , where the transmit power is Pt , the
transmit antenna gain is Gt , the receive antenna gain is Gr, and the received power
(delivered to a matched load) is Pr. The transmit and receive antennas are separated by
the distance R.

Figure 5.2 Basic radio system

the power density radiated by an isotropic antenna (D = 1 = 0 dB) at a distance R is given

by

This result reflects the fact that we must be able to recover all of the radiated
power by integrating over a sphere of radius R surrounding the antenna; since the power
is distributed isotropically, and the area of a sphere is 4π R2, is follows. If the transmit
antenna has a directivity greater than 0 dB, we can find the radiated power density by
multiplying by the directivity, since directivity is defined as the ratio of the actual
radiation intensity to the equivalent isotropic radiation intensity. In addition, if the
transmit antenna has losses, we can include the radiation efficiency factor, which has the

7
effect of converting directivity to gain. Thus, the general expression for the power density
radiated by an arbitrary transmit antenna is

If this power density is incident on the receive antenna, we can use the concept of
effective aperture area, as defined in , to find the received power:

Again, the possibility of losses in the receive antenna can be accounted for by using the
gain (rather than the directivity) of the receive antenna. Then the final result for the
received power is

This result is known as the Friis radio link formula, and it addresses the fundamental
question of how much power is received by a radio antenna. The value given should be
interpreted as the maximum possible received power, as there are a number of factors that
can serve to reduce the received power in an actual radio system. These include
impedance mismatch at either antenna, polarization mismatch between the antennas,
propagation effects leading to attenuation or depolarization, and multipath effects that
may cause partial cancellation of the received field.

The Friis formula, received power is proportional to the product PtGt . These two
factors—the transmit power and transmit antenna gain—characterize the transmitter, and
in the main beam of the antenna the product PtGt can be interpreted equivalently as the
power radiated by an isotropic antenna with input power PtGt . Thus, this product is
defined as the effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP):

For a given frequency, range, and receiver antenna gain, the received power is
proportional to the EIRP of the transmitter and can only be increased by increasing the
EIRP. This can be done by increasing the transmit power, or the transmit antenna gain, or
both.
8
5.2 Radio Receiver Architectures
The receiver is usually the most critical component of a wireless system, having
the overall purpose of reliably recovering the desired signal from a wide spectrum of
requirements for radio receiver design and summarize some of the most common types of
receiver architectures. A well-designed radio receiver must provide several different
functions: transmitting sources, interference, and noise. In this section we will describe
some of the critical

 High gain (100 dB) to restore the low power of the received signal to a
level near its original baseband value

 Selectivity, in order to receive the desired signal while rejecting adjacent

channels, image frequencies, and interference

 Down-conversion from the received RF frequency to a lower IF frequency

for processing

 Detection of the received analog or digital information

 Isolation from the transmitter to avoid saturation of the receiver

Because the typical signal power level from the receive antenna may be as low as −100 to
−120 dBm, the receiver may be required to provide gain as high as 100 to 120 dB. This
much gain should be spread over the RF, IF, and baseband stages to avoid instabilities
and possible oscillation; it is generally good practice to avoid more than about 50–60 dB
of gain at any one frequency band.

Tuned radio frequency receiver:

One of the earliest types of receiving circuits to be developed was the tuned radio
frequency (TRF) receiver. As shown in Figure 5.3, a TRF receiver employs several stages
of RF amplification along with tunable bandpass filters to provide high gain and
selectivity. Alternatively, filtering and amplification may be combined by using
amplifiers with a tunable bandpass response. At relatively low broadcast radio
frequencies, such filters and amplifiers have historically been tuned using mechanically
variable capacitors or inductors. However, such tuning is problematic because of the need
to tune several stages in parallel, and selectivity is poor because the passband of such
filters is fairly broad. In addition, all the gain of the TRF receiver is achieved at the RF
frequency, limiting the amount of gain that can be obtained before oscillation occurs, and
increasing the cost and complexity of the receiver. Because of these drawbacks TRF
9
receivers are seldom used today, and are an especially bad choice for higher RF or
microwave frequencies.

Figure 5.3 Block diagram of a tuned radio frequency receiver.

Direct conversion receiver:

The direct conversion receiver, shown in Figure 5.4, uses a mixer and local oscillator to
perform frequency down-conversion with a zero IF frequency. The local oscillator is set
to the same frequency as the desired RF signal, which is then converted directly to
baseband. For this reason, the direct conversion receiver is sometimes called a homodyne
receiver. For AM reception the received baseband signal would not require any further
detection. The direct conversion receiver offers several advantages over the TRF
receiver, as selectivity can be controlled with a simple low-pass baseband filter, and gain
may be spread through the RF and baseband stages (although it is difficult to obtain
stable high gain at very low frequencies).

Direct conversion receivers are simpler and less costly than superheterodyne
receivers since there is no IF amplifier, IF bandpass filter, or IF local oscillator required
for final down conversion. Another important advantage of direct conversion is that there
is no image frequency, since the mixer difference frequency is effectively zero, and the
sum frequency is twice the LO and easily filtered. However, a serious disadvantage is
that the LO must have a very high degree of precision and stability, especially for high
RF frequencies, to avoid drift of the received signal frequency. This type of receiver is
often used with Doppler radars, where the exact LO can be obtained from the transmitter,
but a number of newer wireless systems are being designed with direct conversion
receivers.

10
 Figure 5.4 Block diagram of a direct-conversion receiver.

Superheterodyne receiver:

By far the most popular type of receiver in use today is the superheterodyne
circuit, shown in Figure 5.5. The block diagram is similar to that of the direct conversion
receiver, but the IF frequency is now nonzero, and is generally selected to be between the
RF frequency and baseband. A midrange IF allows the use of sharper cutoff filters for
improved selectivity, and higher IF gain through the use of an IF amplifier. Tuning is
conveniently accomplished by varying the frequency of the local oscillator so that the IF
frequency remains constant.

The superheterodyne receiver represents the culmination of over 50 years of

receiver development, and is used in the majority of broadcast radios and televisions,
radar systems, cellular telephone systems, and data communications systems. At
microwave and millimeter wave frequencies it is often necessary to use two stages of
down conversion to avoid problems due to LO stability. Such a dual-conversion
superheterodyne receiver employs two local oscillators, two mixers, and two IF
frequencies to achieve down-conversion to baseband.

Figure 5.5 Block diagram of a single-conversion superheterodyne receiver.

11
Noise Characterization of a Receiver

In this system shown in figure 5.6 the total noise power at the output of the
receiver, No, will be due to contributions from the antenna pattern, the loss in the
antenna, the loss in the transmission line, and the receiver components. This noise power
will determine the minimum detectable signal level for the receiver and, for a given
transmitter power, the maximum range of the communication link.

Figure 5.6 Noise analysis of a microwave receiver front end, including antenna and
transmission line contributions.

The receiver components in Figure 5.6 consist of an RF amplifier with gain GRF and
noise temperature TRF, a mixer with an RF-to-IF conversion loss factor L M and noise
temperature TM , and an IF amplifier with gain GIF and noise temperature TIF. The
noise effects of later stages can usually be ignored since the overall noise figure is
dominated by the characteristics of the first few stages. The component noise
temperatures can be related to noise figures as T = (F − 1)T0. From the equivalent noise
temperature of the receiver can be found as

The transmission line connecting the antenna to the receiver has a loss LT , and is at a
physical temperature Tp. So from above eq. its equivalent noise temperature is

we find that the noise temperature of the transmission line (TL) and receiver (REC)
cascade is

12
This noise temperature is defined at the antenna terminals (the input to the transmission
line). The entire antenna pattern can collect noise power. If the antenna has a reasonably
high gain with relatively low sidelobes, we can assume that all noise power comes via the
main beam, so that the noise temperature of the antenna is given by

where ηrad is the efficiency of the antenna, Tp is its physical temperature, and Tb is the
equivalent brightness temperature of the background seen by the main beam. (One must
be careful with this approximation, as it is quite possible for the noise power collected by
the sidelobes to exceed the noise power collected by the main beam, if the sidelobes are
aimed at a hot background.

The noise power at the antenna terminals, which is also the noise power delivered to the
transmission line, is

where B is the system bandwidth. If Si is the received power at the antenna terminals,
then the input SNR at the antenna terminals is Si /Ni . The output signal power is

where GSYS has been defined as a system power gain. The output noise power is

13
where TSYS has been defined as the overall system noise temperature. The output SNR
is

It may be possible to improve this SNR by various signal processing techniques. Note
that it may appear to be convenient to use an overall system noise figure to calculate the
degradation in SNR from input to output for the above system, but one must be very
careful with such an approach because noise figure is defined only for Ni = kT0B, which
is not the case here.

5.3 RADAR SYSTEMS

Radar, or radio detection and ranging, is the oldest application of microwave technology,
dating back to World War II. In its basic operation, a transmitter sends out a signal,
which is partly reflected by a distant target, and then detected by a sensitive receiver. If a
narrowbeam antenna is used, the target’s direction can be accurately given by the angular
position of the antenna. The distance to the target is determined by the time required for a
pulsed signal to travel to the target and back, and the radial velocity of the target is
related to the Doppler shift of the return signal. Below are listed some of the typical
applications of radar systems.

Civilian applications

Airport surveillance

Marine navigation

Weather radar

14
 Altimetry

Aircraft landing

Security alarms

Speed measurement (police radar)

Geographic mapping Military applications

Air and marine navigation

Detection and tracking of aircraft, missiles, and spacecraft

Missile guidance

Fire control for missiles and artillery

Weapon fuses

Reconnaissance

Scientific applications

Astronomy

Mapping and imaging

Precision distance measurement

Remote sensing of the environment

The Radar Equation

Two basic radar systems are illustrated in Figure 5.7; in a monostatic radar the same
antenna is used for both transmit and receive, while a bistatic radar uses two separate
antennas for these functions. Most radars are of the monostatic type, but in some
applications (such as missile fire control) the target may be illuminated by a separate
transmit antenna. Separate antennas are also sometimes used to achieve the necessary
signal isolation between transmitter and receiver. Here we will consider the monostatic
case, but the bistatic case is very similar. If the transmitter radiates a power Pt through an
antenna of gain G, the power density incident on the target is

15
Figure 5.7 Basic monostatic and bistatic radar systems. (a) Monostatic radar system.
(b) Bistatic radar system.

where R is the distance to the target. It is assumed that the target is in the main beam
direction of the antenna. The target will scatter the incident power in various directions;
the ratio of the scattered power in a given direction to the incident power density is
defined as the radar cross section, σ, of the target. Mathematically,

where Ps is the total power scattered by the target, and St is the power density incident on
the target. The radar cross section thus has the dimensions of area, and is a property of
the target itself. It depends on the incident and reflection angles, as well as on the
polarizations of the incident and reflected waves. Since the target scatters as a source of
finite size, the power density of the reradiated field must decay as 1/4π R2 away from the
target. Thus the power density of the scattered field back at the receive antenna must be
16
for the effective area of the antenna gives the received power as

This is the radar equation. Note that the received power varies as 1/R4, which implies
that a high-power transmitter and a sensitive low-noise receiver are needed to detect
targets at long ranges. Because of noise received by the antenna and generated in the
receiver, there will be some minimum detectable power that can be discriminated by the
receiver. If this power is Pmin, then above eq. can be rewritten to give the maximum
range as

Signal processing can effectively reduce the minimum detectable signal, and so increase
the usable range. One very common processing technique used with pulse radars is pulse
integration, in which a sequence of N received pulses is integrated over time. The effect
is to reduce the noise level, which has a zero mean, relative to the returned pulse level,
resulting in an improvement factor of approximately N

Pulse Radar

A pulse radar determines target range by measuring the round-trip time of a

pulsed microwave signal. Figure 5.8 shows a typical pulse radar system block diagram.
The transmitter portion consists of a single-sideband mixer used to frequency offset a
microwave oscillator of frequency f0 by an amount equal to the IF frequency. After
power amplification, pulses of this signal are transmitted by the antenna. The
transmit/receive switch is controlled by the pulse generator to give a transmit pulse width
τ , with a pulse repetition frequency (PRF) of fr = 1/Tr. The transmit pulse thus consists
of a short burst of a microwave signal at the frequency f0 + fIF. Typical pulse durations
range from 100 ms to 50 ns; shorter pulses give better range resolution, but longer pulses
result in a better SNR after receiver processing.

17
 Typical pulse repetition frequencies range from 100 Hz to 100 kHz; higher PRFs
give more returned pulses per unit time, which improves performance, but lower PRFs
avoid range ambiguities that can occur when R > cTr /2. In the receive mode, the returned
signal is amplified and mixed with the local oscillator of frequency f0 to produce the
desired IF signal. The local oscillator is used for both up-conversion in the transmitter
and down-conversion in the receiver; this simplifies the system and avoids the problem of
frequency drift, which would be a consideration if separate oscillators were used.

The IF signal is amplified, detected, and fed to a video amplifier/ display. Search
radars often use a continuously rotating antenna for 360◦ azimuthal coverage; in this case
the display shows a polar plot of target range versus angle. Modern radars use a computer
for the processing of the detected signal and display of target information. The
transmit/receive (T/R) switch in the pulse radar actually performs two functions: forming
the transmit pulse train, and switching the antenna between the transmitter and receiver.
This latter function is also known as duplexing.

In principle, the duplexing function could be achieved with a circulator, but an

important requirement is that a high degree of isolation (about 80–100 dB) be provided
between the transmitter and receiver to avoid transmitter leakage into the receiver, which
would drown the target return (or possibly damage the receiver). As circulators typically
achieve only 20–30 dB of isolation, some type of switch, with high isolation, is required.
If necessary, further isolation can be obtained by using additional switches along the path
of the transmitter circuit.

Doppler Radar

If the target has a velocity component along the line of sight of the radar, the
returned signal will be shifted in frequency relative to the transmitted frequency due to
the Doppler effect. If the transmitted frequency is f0, and the radial target velocity is v,
then the shift in frequency, or the Doppler frequency, will be

where c is the velocity of light. The received frequency is then f0 ± fd , where the
plus sign corresponds to an approaching target and the minus sign corresponds to a
receding target. Figure 5.9 shows a basic Doppler radar system. Observe that it is much
simpler than a pulse radar since a continuous wave signal is used, and the transmit
oscillator can also be used as a local oscillator for the receive mixer because the received
signal is frequency offset by the Doppler frequency.

18
 Figure 5.8 A pulse radar system and timing diagram.

The filter following the mixer should have a passband corresponding to the
expected minimum and maximum target velocities. It is important that the filter have
high attenuation at zero frequency, to eliminate the effect of clutter return and transmitter
leakage at the frequency f0, as these signals would down-convert to zero frequency. Then
a high degree of isolation is not necessary between transmitter and receiver, and a
circulator can be used. This type of filter response also helps to reduce the effect of 1/ f
noise. The above radar cannot distinguish between approaching and receding targets, as
the sign of fd is lost in the detection process. Such information can be recovered,
however, by using a mixer that produces separately the upper and lower sideband
products.

19
 Figure 5.9 Doppler radar system.

Since the return of a pulse radar from a moving target will contain a Doppler shift,
it is possible to determine both the range and velocity (and position, if a narrow-beam
antenna is used) of a target with a single radar. Such a radar is known as a pulse-Doppler
radar, and it offers several advantages over pulse or Doppler radars. One problem with a
pulse radar is that it is impossible to distinguish between a true target and clutter returns
from the ground, trees, buildings, etc. Such clutter returns may be picked up from the
antenna sidelobes. However, if the target is moving (e.g., as in an airport surveillance
radar application), the Doppler shift can be used to separate its return from clutter, which
is stationary relative to the radar.

5.4 Millimeter-Wave Radios in Backhaul Networks

Recently, millimeter-wave (MMW) radio has attracted a great deal of interest
from academia, industry, and global standardization bodies due to its ability to provide
multi-gigabit rates required in transmission links for emerging broadband wireless
networks. Wireless broadband access is attractive to operators because of its low
construction cost, quick deployment, and flexibility in providing access to different
services. In October 2003 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) established
new MMW radio services along with its allocation, band plan, service rules, and
technical standards to promote private sector development and use of the spectrum in the
licensed 71-76 GHz, 81-86 GHz, and 92-95 GHz bands (“E” bands.) This paper describes
E-band allocation and millimeter-wave propagation, including engineering data useful for
MMW link design, as well as limits and constraints on link configurations. We also
discuss the 60 GHz unlicensed spectrum.

Millimeter-Wave Radio Applications Millimeter-wave radios have numerous

indoor and outdoor applications that include such sectors as residential, business, public
20
(libraries, etc.), and commercial (cafes, hotels, etc.). MMW is suitable for in-home
applications like audio/video transmission, desktop connections, and portable devices. In
addition, it can be used for outdoor point-to-point applications. Judging by the interest
shown by many leading companies, applications can be divided into the following
categories:

Point-to-Multipoint

 High-definition video streaming

 File transfer

 Wireless gigabit Ethernet

 Wireless docking station and desktop point-to-multipoint connections

 Wireless ad hoc networks

Point-to-Point

 Wireless backhaul for 3G and 4G mobile communications

 Campus applications

 Video relay of uncompressed HDTV

The Unlicensed 60 GHz Band

The 60 GHz band has been allocated worldwide for unlicensed wireless
communications systems. In 2001 the FCC set aside a continuous block of 7 GHz of
spectrum (57-64 GHz) for wireless communications. All uses are permitted except for
radar. The major commercial benefit is that users don’t need an FCC license to operate
equipment in this spectrum. In addition to the high-data rates the spectrum allows, energy
propagation in the 60 GHz band has unique characteristics that add other benefits, such as
excellent immunity to interference, high security, and the reuse of frequency. Regulatory
organizations in United States, Japan, Canada, and Australia have already set frequency
bands and regulations for 60 GHz operation, while in Korea and Europe intense efforts
are currently underway. Table 1 summarizes the issued and proposed frequency
allocations and main specifications for 60 GHz radio regulation in six countries.

21
 On June 1, 2007, the FCC released ET Docket No. 07-113, a proposal to amend
the requirements in Part 15 of the FCC rules applicable to unlicensed transmitters
operating in the 57-64 GHz frequency range. Specifically, the proposal would increase
the fundamental radiated emission limit for unlicensed 60 GHz transmitters with very
high gain antennas, specify the emission limit as an equivalent isotropically radiated
power (EIRP) level, and eliminate the requirement for an identification for 60 GHz
transmitters. The proposal would increase the current average EIRP level from 40 dBm to
a new level of 82 dBm minus 2 dB for every dB that antenna gain is below 51 dBi. The
peak power EIRP level would increase from 43 dBm to a new level of 85 dBm minus 2
dB for every dB that the antenna gain is below 51 dBi. These increases would be limited
to 60 GHz transmitters located outdoors or those located indoors with emissions directed
outdoors, e.g., through a window. The changes would allow longer communication
ranges for unlicensed point-to-point 60 GHz broadband digital systems and thereby
extend their ability to supply ultra high-speed broadband service to office buildings and
other commercial facilities. The proposal is still under discussion and had not been
implemented as of this printing.

The 70, 80, and 90 GHz Bands

In 2003 the FCC opened up 13 GHz of spectrum at frequencies much higher than
had been previously available commercially. The spectrum provides the means for
22
economical broadband connectivity for the first time at true gigabit data rates and
beyond. In 2005 the Commission for European Post and Telecommunications (CEPT)
released a European-wide frequency channel plan for fixed service systems in these
bands. The following year, the European Technical Standards Institute (ETSI) released
specifications covering these bands. Of particular interest is the 10 GHz of bandwidth
between 70 and 80 GHz. Designed to coexist, the 71-76 GHz and 81-86 GHz allocations
allow 5 GHz of full duplex transmission bandwidth, enough to transmit a gigabit of data
even with the simplest modulation schemes. With more spectrally efficient modulations,
full duplex data rates of 10 Gbps (OC-192, STM-64 or 10 GigE) can be achieved.

Regarding the E-band spectrum, the FCC’s approach is to allow nonexclusive

nationwide licensing with site-by-site coordination but without extensive FCC action.
This is made possible by using the “pencil beam” concept of operation, in which stringent
requirements are placed on the antenna radiation pattern of at least 50 dBi gain and no
more than a 0.6-degree half-power beamwidth (see Table 2). The three spectrum
segments of the E-band (71-76, 81-86, and 92-95 GHz) have been allocated as a shared
non-federal and federal government service for short-range line-of-sight radios. E-band is
as yet the highest frequency spectrum allocated to licensed operation, and it contains
sufficient space for digital transmission speeds comparable to optical communication
systems (1.25-5 Gbps). Furthermore, under the licensing rules, a large number of users
within a small geographic area will be able to share the E-band allocation.

Other than the pencil-beam antenna concept to allow for a high spatial reuse of
frequencies, there are few restrictions imposed on manufacturers of E-band equipment.
Thus, it’s likely that technological developments will make using E-band—and perhaps
still higher frequency bands—practical and more efficient. Several radios have appeared
on the market that use the 71-76 and 81-86 GHz bands as a paired channel. At present
they have a fixed transmission speed of 1.25 Gbps full duplex, and their intended
applications are for high-speed wireless local area networks, broadband access systems
for the Internet, and point-to-point communications. Each E-band licensee is assigned the
totality of the spectrum in the 71-76, 81-86, and 92-95 GHz bands. The first two bands
can be used as a paired channel, i.e., each transceiver transmits in only one of the bands

23
and receives in only the other. The 92-95 GHz band is intended for indoor applications
only.

Safety of the Millimeter-Wave System

Because MMW systems have low power levels, millimeter-wave systems do not
penetrate the human body. High frequency emissions such as 60 GHz are absorbed by
moisture in the human body and thus cannot penetrate beyond the outer layers of skin. As
a result, exposure to 60 GHz is similar to exposure to sunlight but at 1/10,000 of the
energy. Low frequency emissions penetrate, and may even pass completely through, the
human body, while the minimal penetration of 60 GHz energy sets it apart from the
debate that currently surrounds the safety of other RF communication systems. At MMW
frequencies, RF is generally absorbed at the skin layer, but eye damage is a health
concern. In consultation with four health-related agencies, the FCC has adopted exposure
limits as follows: For the general public, accepted exposure levels in the 1.5- 100 GHz
band is 1 mW/cm2 averaged over 30 minutes. The occupational/controlled exposure in
the same band is 5 mW/cm2 averaged over 6 minutes

5.5 The FCC and NTIA Licensing Process

The FCC ruling also permits a simplified licensing scheme for millimeter-wave radios,
allowing cheap and fast allocations to prospective users: You can apply for a 10-year
license, get accepted, and pay for it in less than 30 minutes for only a few hundred
dollars. The FCC will issue an unlimited number of non-exclusive nationwide licenses to
non-federal government entities in the 12.9 GHz of spectrum allocated for commercial
use. These licenses will serve as a prerequisite for registering individual point-to-point
links. The 71-95 GHz bands are allocated on a shared basis with federal government
users. Therefore, in order to operate a link under its non-exclusive nationwide license,
licensee will have to:

Coordinate with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration

(NTIA) with respect to federal government operations.  Register as an approved link
with a third party Database Manager. On September 29, 2004, the Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) appointed Comsearch, Frequency Finder, and
Micronet Communications as independent Database Managers responsible for the design
and management of the third-party 71- 95 GHz bands Link Registration System (LRS).
Proposed links must be coordinated with NTIA. NTIA has developed an automated
coordination mechanism that can determine whether a given non-federal government link
has any potential conflict with federal government users. A proposed link entered into

24
NTIA’s automated system will result in either a “green light” or a “yellow light” based
on the proposed parameters.

If the proposed link receives a green light, that link will be protected for 60 days in
NTIA’s system. If registration has not been completed through the LRS after 60 days, the
link must be resubmitted through NTIA’s automated system for coordination with federal
government operations. If the proposed link receives a yellow light, users will need to file
Form 601 and Schedule M with the FCC for further coordination with NTIA through the
existing Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC) process. When IRAC clears
a proposed link, the FCC will send the licensee a letter confirming that the IRAC
coordination has been completed. Database Managers will also be notified through ULS
nightly batch files so that they can complete the link registration.

To summarize, a filing with the FCC will be required for links that:

 Receive a yellow light from NTIA’s automated system.

 Require environmental assessment.

 Require coordination because of a radio quiet zone.

 Are subject to international coordination requirements.

Licensees must begin operation of a link within 12 months from the date that the link is
registered through the LRS. While licensees need not file a notification of construction
completion, it is their responsibility to notify a Database Manager to withdraw
unconstructed links from the LRS. In turn, the Database Manager must then remove a
link from the LRS if the link remains unconstructed after 12 months. Further, the
interference protection date will be rendered invalid for any registered link that does not
comply with the 12-month construction requirement.

Licensees must meet the loading requirements of 47 C.F.R. § 101.141. If they don’t, the
database will be modified to limit coordination rights to the loaded spectrum, and the
licensee will lose protection rights on any spectrum that has not been loaded. Currently,
there are no international agreements between the United States, Mexico, and Canada
with regard to the 71-76 GHz, 81-86 GHz, and 92-95 GHz bands. However, as a general
rule, wireless operations must not cause harmful interference across international borders.
(See FCC Public Notice DA 05-311, Feb 03, 2005, for more information on the
registration process in these bands.)

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5.6 MULTI GIGA BYTE
Advances in wireless access points and Ethernet switch technologies are driving
connectivity at the edge beyond one gigabit to multi-gigabit. In this series, we’ll
discuss multi-gigabit technology and take a closer look at why organizations will
ultimately require more than one-gigabit ethernet at the edge. We’ll also explore multi-
gigabit standards and cabling, along with specific use cases, considerations and when
multi-gigabit technology should be adopted. Lastly, we’ll conclude this series with a
summary of Ruckus’ multi-gigabit portfolio.

The history of multi-gigabit

A decade ago, the predominant Ethernet switches moved to 1 GbE ports,

superseding Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps), which was the previous prevailing standard.
Today, most enterprise-class switches feature 1 GbE access ports. This is because 1 GbE
is standard for almost all end-user devices, including desktops, printers, voice over IP
(VoIP) phones and wireless access points (APs). For most users and devices, 1 GbE
delivers adequate performance. For most applications, the connection to the switch is not
the limiting factor to performance. Rather, a bottleneck is typically due to internet
connection speed, or the response time of an application, application, user or device. As
the demand for Wi-Fi increases, so does the need for higher aggregate performance from
the access points.

More and more users, each with devices such as laptops, tablets, and phones, are
using the latest Wi-Fi standards for higher performance. Concurrently, there is an
increased dependence on wireless and cloud-based applications that lead to more total
data being transferred via wireless access points. With prior generations of Wi-Fi, 802.11
(A, B, G & N) APs could only support up to about 600 megabits, though in real-world
environments they couldn't process more than 200 or 300 megabytes per second
(throughput). This means 1 GbE access ports were more than capable of handling all the
data that earlier generations of APs could push out. 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) access points can
hit up to 2.3 gigabits per second, though the practical limit is a little less. Most 802.11ac
(Wi-Fi 5) APs are equipped with two 1 GbE ports, with some featuring 2.5 GbE ports.
The next generation of 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) APs have begun shipping in the latter half of
2018. Theoretically, the PHYs will support almost up to 10 gigabits per second, although
practical limits will ultimately mean somewhat slower throughput.

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 TEXT BOOK / REFERENCE BOOKS
1. David M. Pozar, “Microwave Engineering”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
2. Samuel Y Liao, “Microwave Devices & Circuits”, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall of India,
2008.
3. Kulkarni M., "Microwave and Radar Engineering", 4th Edition, Umesh Publication, 2010.
4. Annapurna Das and Sisir K Das, “Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Tata McGraw Hill, 2010.
5. M.M.Radmanesh, “RF & Microwave Electronics Illustrated”, Pearson Education, 2007.
6. Robert E.Colin, “Foundations for Microwave Engineering”, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill,
2001.

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 PART: A
1. Define Friis transmission formula
2. Draw the functional blocks of general microwave bench set
up.
3. What is meant by Backhaul Networks?
4. What is FCC?
5. Define millimeter wave system.
6. What are the types of microwave receiver?
7. What are the advantages of microwave communication
system?
8. Define resonant frequency
9. What is wave meter?
10. Explain the methods to measure Q factor

PART: B

1. Describe with neat sketch about microwave communication

systems.
2. Derive the expression of Friis power transmission formula
and explain how it is working in microwave systems
3. Differentiate the features and significance of 60,70,80,90 GHz
frequency bands and its channel sizes.
4. Explain the licensing process to satisfy a communication
system and the role of FCC.
5. Explain in detail about microwave and millimeter wave
system in Radar system.

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